Perfekt: trennbare Verben
In German, the Perfekt is a past tense used to describe actions that have been completed in the past. The Perfekt is formed using a helping verb (usually haben or sein) and the past participle of the main verb.
Trennbare Verben, or separable verbs, are verbs in German that consist of a prefix and a base verb. When using these verbs in the Perfekt tense, the prefix is separated from the base verb and placed at the end of the sentence. Here’s how you form the Perfekt tense with separable verbs:
- Conjugate the helping verb (haben or sein) in the present tense:
For regular verbs, “haben” is the most common helping verb. However, some verbs, especially those describing motion or a change of state, use “sein” as the helping verb. - Add the past participle of the main verb:
The past participle is formed by taking the infinitive of the main verb and adding the ge- prefix and -t or -en at the end, depending on the verb. - Separate the prefix and the base verb:
The prefix is detached from the base verb and placed at the end of the sentence.
Here’s an example with the separable verb “anrufen” (to call):
Ich habe meine Freundin angerufen.
(I called my friend.)
In this example:
- “Ich habe” is the conjugated form of the helping verb “haben.”
- “angerufen” is the past participle of the separable verb “anrufen.”
- The prefix “an-” is separated from the base verb and placed at the end of the sentence.
Another example with the separable verb “aufstehen” (to get up):
Ich bin heute früh aufgestanden.
(I got up early today.)
In this case:
- “Ich bin” is the conjugated form of the helping verb “sein” because the verb “aufstehen” indicates a change of state (getting up).
- “aufgestanden” is the past participle of the separable verb “aufstehen.”
- The prefix “auf-” is separated from the base verb and placed at the end.
Remember that not all verbs in German are separable, and not all separable verbs are used in the Perfekt tense. Some verbs are inseparable or do not follow the same rules. It’s important to learn the specific patterns for each verb.
Präteritum: sein und haben
In German, the Präteritum, or simple past tense, is a past tense used to describe actions that took place in the past. Both “sein” (to be) and “haben” (to have) are irregular verbs, and their conjugation in the Präteritum is a bit different from regular verbs. Here’s how “sein” and “haben” are conjugated in the Präteritum:
“sein” (to be) in Präteritum:
- ich war (I was)
- du warst (you were — informal singular)
- er/sie/es war (he/she/it was)
- wir waren (we were)
- ihr wart (you were — informal plural)
- sie/Sie waren (they/you were — formal)
Example sentences:
- Ich war gestern im Kino. (I was at the cinema yesterday.)
- Du warst nicht da. (You were not there.)
- Wir waren müde. (We were tired.)
“haben” (to have) in Präteritum:
- ich hatte (I had)
- du hattest (you had — informal singular)
- er/sie/es hatte (he/she/it had)
- wir hatten (we had)
- ihr hattet (you had — informal plural)
- sie/Sie hatten (they/you had — formal)
Example sentences:
- Ich hatte gestern viel zu tun. (I had a lot to do yesterday.)
- Du hattest Glück. (You were lucky.)
- Wir hatten eine gute Zeit. (We had a good time.)
It’s important to note that while the Präteritum is used in written German and in more formal speech, in everyday spoken German, especially in the southern parts of Germany and in Austria, people often use the Perfekt tense for conversational past. In the Perfekt tense, “sein” and “haben” are used as auxiliary verbs, just as explained in the previous answer for separable verbs.
Präteritum: Modalverben
The Präteritum (simple past tense) conjugation of Modalverben (modal verbs) in German follows a specific pattern. Modal verbs express necessity, ability, permission, or willingness. The modal verbs in German include “können” (can), “müssen” (must), “dürfen” (may), “sollen” (should), and “wollen” (want).
Here’s the conjugation of Modalverben in Präteritum:
können (can):
- ich konnte (I could)
- du konntest (you could — informal singular)
- er/sie/es konnte (he/she/it could)
- wir konnten (we could)
- ihr konntet (you could — informal plural)
- sie/Sie konnten (they/you could — formal)
müssen (must):
- ich musste (I had to)
- du musstest (you had to — informal singular)
- er/sie/es musste (he/she/it had to)
- wir mussten (we had to)
- ihr musstet (you had to — informal plural)
- sie/Sie mussten (they/you had to — formal)
dürfen (may):
- ich durfte (I was allowed to)
- du durftest (you were allowed to — informal singular)
- er/sie/es durfte (he/she/it was allowed to)
- wir durften (we were allowed to)
- ihr durftet (you were allowed to — informal plural)
- sie/Sie durften (they/you were allowed to — formal)
sollen (should):
- ich sollte (I should)
- du solltest (you should — informal singular)
- er/sie/es sollte (he/she/it should)
- wir sollten (we should)
- ihr solltet (you should — informal plural)
- sie/Sie sollten (they/you should — formal)
wollen (want):
- ich wollte (I wanted)
- du wolltest (you wanted — informal singular)
- er/sie/es wollte (he/she/it wanted)
- wir wollten (we wanted)
- ihr wolltet (you wanted — informal plural)
- sie/Sie wollten (they/you wanted — formal)
These conjugations are used when talking about actions or states in the past that were influenced or guided by the modal verb. Modal verbs are often used with an infinitive verb to express the action that is influenced by the modal verb.
Präteritum: regelmäßige und unregelmäßige Verben
In German, the Präteritum (simple past tense) is used to describe completed actions or events in the past. Verbs in the Präteritum are conjugated differently for regular and irregular verbs.
Regelmäßige Verben (Regular Verbs):
Regelmäßige Verben (regular verbs) follow a predictable conjugation pattern in the Präteritum. The endings for regular weak verbs typically involve adding “-te” to the verb stem. Here’s the conjugation for the verb “spielen” (to play), a regular verb:
- ich spielte (I played)
- du spieltest (you played — informal singular)
- er/sie/es spielte (he/she/it played)
- wir spielten (we played)
- ihr spieltet (you played — informal plural)
- sie/Sie spielten (they/you played — formal)
Unregelmäßige Verben (Irregular Verbs):
Unregelmäßige Verben (irregular verbs) do not follow the standard conjugation pattern. They have unique stem changes or irregular endings in the Präteritum. Common irregular verbs include “sein” (to be), “haben” (to have), “gehen” (to go), and “kommen” (to come). Here are the conjugations for these verbs:
sein (to be):
- ich war (I was)
- du warst (you were — informal singular)
- er/sie/es war (he/she/it was)
- wir waren (we were)
- ihr wart (you were — informal plural)
- sie/Sie waren (they/you were — formal)
haben (to have):
- ich hatte (I had)
- du hattest (you had — informal singular)
- er/sie/es hatte (he/she/it had)
- wir hatten (we had)
- ihr hattet (you had — informal plural)
- sie/Sie hatten (they/you had — formal)
gehen (to go):
- ich ging (I went)
- du gingst (you went — informal singular)
- er/sie/es ging (he/she/it went)
- wir gingen (we went)
- ihr gingt (you went — informal plural)
- sie/Sie gingen (they/you went — formal)
kommen (to come):
- ich kam (I came)
- du kamst (you came — informal singular)
- er/sie/es kam (he/she/it came)
- wir kamen (we came)
- ihr kamt (you came — informal plural)
- sie/Sie kamen (they/you came — formal)
These irregular verbs have unique forms in the Präteritum, and they don’t follow the standard pattern of regular weak verbs. It’s important to memorize these irregular forms when learning German.
Konjunktiv 2: haben
The Konjunktiv II (subjunctive II) form of the verb “werden” (to become) in German is used to express hypothetical or unreal situations, wishes, or conditions that are contrary to reality. The Konjunktiv II is often used in conjunction with “würde” to form the conditional.
Here’s the conjugation of “werden” in Konjunktiv II:
- ich würde (I would)
- du würdest (you would — informal singular)
- er/sie/es würde (he/she/it would)
- wir würden (we would)
- ihr würdet (you would — informal plural)
- sie/Sie würden (they/you would — formal)
Example sentences:
- Hypothetical Situation:
Wenn ich reich wäre, würde ich um die Welt reisen. (If I were rich, I would travel around the world.) - Wishes:
Ich wünschte, es würde nicht regnen. (I wish it wouldn’t rain.) - Conditional Statements:
Wenn du Zeit hättest, würden wir ins Kino gehen. (If you had time, we would go to the cinema.)
In the examples above, the Konjunktiv II form “würde” is combined with the infinitive form of “werden” to express various hypothetical or unreal situations. Keep in mind that “würde” is used as an auxiliary verb, and the main verb (in this case, “werden”) appears in its infinitive form.
The Konjunktiv II is commonly used in German to convey politeness, make requests, or talk about unreal or hypothetical scenarios.
Konjunktiv 2: sein
The Konjunktiv II (subjunctive II) form of the verb “sein” (to be) in German is used to express hypothetical or unreal situations, wishes, doubts, or conditions that are contrary to reality. The Konjunktiv II is often used in conjunction with the auxiliary verb “würde” to form the conditional.
Here’s the conjugation of “sein” in Konjunktiv II:
- ich wäre (I would be)
- du wär(e)st (you would be — informal singular)
- er/sie/es wäre (he/she/it would be)
- wir wären (we would be)
- ihr wärt (you would be — informal plural)
- sie/Sie wären (they/you would be — formal)
Example sentences:
- Hypothetical Situation:
Wenn ich reich wäre, würde ich ein Haus kaufen. (If I were rich, I would buy a house.) - Wishes:
Ich wünschte, du wärst hier. (I wish you were here.) - Doubts:
Ich glaube nicht, dass das wahr wäre. (I don’t believe that would be true.) - Conditional Statements:
Wenn es warm wäre, würden wir im Garten essen. (If it were warm, we would eat in the garden.)
In these examples, the Konjunktiv II form “wäre” is combined with the auxiliary verb “würde” to express various hypothetical or unreal situations. Keep in mind that “würde” is used as an auxiliary verb, and the main verb (in this case, “sein”) appears in its Konjunktiv II form.
The Konjunktiv II is commonly used in German to convey politeness, make requests, express uncertainty, or discuss unreal or hypothetical scenarios.
Konjunktiv 2: sollen
The Konjunktiv II (subjunctive II) form of the verb “sollen” in German is used to express hypothetical or unreal situations, suggestions, doubts, or indirect speech. The Konjunktiv II is often used in conjunction with the auxiliary verb “würde” to form the conditional.
Here’s the conjugation of “sollen” in Konjunktiv II:
- ich sollte (I should)
- du solltest (you should — informal singular)
- er/sie/es sollte (he/she/it should)
- wir sollten (we should)
- ihr solltet (you should — informal plural)
- sie/Sie sollten (they/you should — formal)
Example sentences:
- Hypothetical Situation:
Wenn ich mehr Zeit hätte, sollte ich mehr Sport treiben. (If I had more time, I should do more sports.) - Suggestions:
Du solltest früher ins Bett gehen. (You should go to bed earlier.) - Doubts:
Er sagte, er sollte es tun, aber ich bezweifle, dass er es getan hat. (He said he should do it, but I doubt that he did.) - Indirect Speech:
Er fragte, ob er es tun sollte. (He asked if he should do it.)
In these examples, the Konjunktiv II form “sollte” is used in various contexts to express hypothetical or unreal situations, give suggestions, convey doubts, or report indirect speech. When forming conditional statements, “würde” can be added to create a more explicit conditional mood.
The Konjunktiv II is a versatile form used in German to discuss unreal or hypothetical scenarios, express politeness, and convey indirect speech.
Konjunktiv 2: können
The Konjunktiv II (subjunctive II) form of the verb “können” (can) in German is used to express hypothetical or unreal situations, possibilities, wishes, or doubts. The Konjunktiv II is often used in conjunction with the auxiliary verb “würde” to form the conditional.
Here’s the conjugation of “können” in Konjunktiv II:
- ich könnte (I could)
- du könntest (you could — informal singular)
- er/sie/es könnte (he/she/it could)
- wir könnten (we could)
- ihr könntet (you could — informal plural)
- sie/Sie könnten (they/you could — formal)
Example sentences:
- Hypothetical Situation: Wenn ich Zeit hätte, könnte ich dir helfen. (If I had time, I could help you.)
- Possibilities: Du könntest ihn anrufen, um zu fragen. (You could call him to ask.)
- Wishes: Ich wünschte, ich könnte fliegen. (I wish I could fly.)
- Doubts: Er sagte, er könnte es tun, aber ich bezweifle, dass er es getan hat. (He said he could do it, but I doubt that he did.)
In these examples, the Konjunktiv II form “könnte” is used to express various hypothetical or unreal situations, possibilities, wishes, and doubts. When forming conditional statements, “würde” can be added to create a more explicit conditional mood.
The Konjunktiv II is commonly used in German to discuss unreal or hypothetical scenarios, express politeness, convey possibilities, and express wishes or doubts.
