German Verbs

Now that we've covered the basics of German nouns, let's turn our attention to German verbs—the words that describe the action the subject (noun or pronoun) is performing.

What is the woman doing? The woman is learningGerman. Let's learn how to build simple sentences like this, with a subject and a verb.

1. German Verb Conjugation

To use verbs in German sentences, we need to cover conjugation. We'll start by learning how to conjugate the verb machen, which means "to make."

Whenever we introduce new verbs, we use the infinitive (the root form of the verb). For example: machen. But depending on the sentence subject and/or tense, the verb transforms. This is called conjugation.

Here's a conjugation table for machen:

As noted above, verb conjugation depends on two factors:

• What tense is being used (e.g., present tense, past tense)
• What noun (e.g., the dog, the woman) or pronoun (e.g., I, we, they) is being used

In this lesson, we will focus on the present tense.

2. Regular German Verbs

Most German verbs, called regular verbs, follow a common conjugation pattern. If you know how to conjugate one regular verb, you can do the same for others. Machen is a regular verb. Another example is gehen, which means "to go."

Let's see how gehen is conjugated, similarly to machen:

Notice how the beginnings (the stems) of both verbs stay the same, but the endings change in the same way.

Well done! 🎉

You're starting to conjugate German verbs! This is an important step since you'll conjugate verbs in nearly every sentence you create. Here's a list of commonly used regular verbs:

		Verb	Translation
		reden	to speak
		spielen	to play
		leben	to live
		glauben	to believe
		fragen	to ask
		arbeiten	to work

Scroll horizontally to see all columns →

3. Irregular German Verbs

Unlike regular verbs, which follow a set pattern, irregular verbs are unique. It's best to memorize these as you come across them. Fortunately, you'll frequently see two common irregular verbs, so you'll learn them quickly. These two essential verbs are: sein (to be) and haben (to have).

Let's practice recognizing these irregular verbs by guessing the correct translations of the sentences below:

Er hat einen guten Beruf.

They have jobs.He has a good job.I don't have a job.

Continue

Great job 🎉!

You are beginning to use some of the most important verbs in the German language!

4. German Verb Practice

Before moving to the next lesson, practice what you've learned with the exercises below.

Tap the words to construct your sentence.

Your sentence:

Clear

Tap words below to build your sentence

Available words:

IchDumachmacheeinenKuchen.

Check Answer

Write the correct conjugated verb in each sentence.

Well done! You're building simple sentences in German! Now you're ready for the next lesson on German declension.