What is a verb in German?

Part ofGermanVerbs

Key points about verbs

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  • A verb is a doing word. It explains what is happening, a state of being or an action.

  • The ending of a verb changes when it is to show who is doing an action. For example, 'I go swimming' or 'he goes swimming'.

  • Verbs are an essential part of a sentence as they indicate , for example past, present or future.

  • In German, verbs can be weak (regular), strong (irregular) or mixed (semi-regular).

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Weak verbs

A regular verb does not have a spelling change in the which applies to all tenses.

For regular verbs the following pattern is used:

  1. Start with the - eg (to play).

  2. Remove -en from the end to find the stem: spiel-.

  3. Add the correct ending for who is doing the action eg ich, du, er, sie, es, wir, Sie.

Example:

(I play table tennis).

  • The stem spiel- also stays the same in the , for example .

Some key regular verbs include:

GermanEnglishPast participle
to buy
to do/to make
to learn
to play
to live
to listen
to dance
to work
to search/to look for
to say

Weak verbs with a difference

If the of a verb ends in -d or -t after removing the -en from the infinitive, an extra -e is added in the du, er, sie, es and ihr forms to make the verb easier to pronounce.

For example:

  • (to find) – , ,

  • (to work) – , ,

  • (to wait) – , ,

Mini quiz

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Complete the table by filling in the missing information:

InfinitiveStemPast participle
1.mach-gemacht
wohnen2.3.
4.tanz-getanzt
lernenlern-5.
6.hör-gehört

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Video - Conjugating regular verbs

Makeda and Rapper are directing a music video with their friend Marco, but he struggles to understand her until she can learn how to match the verb to the person doing it.

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Strong (irregular) verbs

An is also known as a strong verb as there is a spelling change in the stem. There can also be a spelling change in the past participle.

A strong verb has a spelling change in the stem for the du and er/sie/es forms.

These changes also alter the way the word is pronounced.

The following stem changes can occur:

Add i

Some verbs change the vowel sound by adding an i - eg (to read) and (to see)

(to read) (to see)
(I read) (I see)
(you read) (you see)
(he/she/it reads) (he / she / it sees)
(we read) (we see)
(you [plural] read) (you [plural] see)
(you [formal] read) (you [formal] see)
(they read) (they see)

Add an umlaut

Some verbs change the vowel sound by adding an  - eg  (to travel) and  (to wear)

(to travel) (to wear)
(I travel) (I wear)
(you travel) (you wear)
(he / she / it travels) (he / she / it wears)
(we travel) (we wear)
(you [plural] travel) (you [plural] wear)
(you [formal] travel) (you [formal] wear)
(they travel) (they wear)

Swap e for i

Some verbs change the vowel sound by swapping e for i eg  (to eat)

(to eat)
(I eat)
(you eat)
(he/she/it eats)
(we eat)
(you [plural] eat)
(you [formal] eat)
(they eat)

Some key irregular verbs include:

GermanEnglishPast participle
to travel
to eat
to read
to see
to become
to speak
to take
to forget
to give
to help

Mini quiz

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What type of verbs are regular in the present tense, but irregular in the past?

  1. What is meant by the term stem when talking about verbs?

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Quiz

Practise what you've learned about verbs with this quiz.

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