German Verbs Made Easy: A Beginner’s Guide

Are you learning German and feeling overwhelmed by verbs? Don’t worry! German verbs follow specific rules that, once learned, make the language much easier to navigate. In this article, we’ll break down the basics of German verbs, from conjugation to those tricky “separable” prefixes.

1. What is a German Verb?

In German, verbs describe actions (running), processes (becoming), or states (being).

• The Infinitiv: This is the “basic” form of the verb you find in the dictionary. Most end in -en (e.g., sagen, sprechen) or sometimes just -n (e.g., handeln).
• The Stem: If you remove the ending, you are left with the “Stamm” (stem). For sagen, the stem is sag-.

2. Finite vs. Infinite Verbs

Verbs change their form depending on how they are used in a sentence:

• Infinite Verbs: These do not have a personal ending and cannot stand alone as the main action. Examples include the Infinitive (lieben) or Participles (liebend, geliebt).
• Finite Verbs: These have personal endings (like “I go” vs “He goes”) and act as the predicate (the core action) of the sentence.

3. The Three Main Types of Verbs

German categorizes verbs into three functional groups:

1. Hilfsverben (Auxiliary Verbs): haben (have), sein (be), and werden (become). These help form complex tenses or the passive voice.
2. Modalverben (Modal Verbs): Verbs like können (can) or dürfen (may) that change the “mood” of an action.
3. Vollverben (Full Verbs): Most verbs fall here. They can stand alone to form a sentence, like sehen (see) or rufen (call).

4. How to Conjugate: Personal Endings

In German, the ending of the verb must match the person speaking. Most verbs in the Present Tense (Präsens) follow “Serie A”:

Pro Tip: If a verb stem ends in -d or -t (like warten), German adds an extra -e- before the ending to make it easier to pronounce (e.g., du wartest).

5. Weak, Strong, and Mixed Verbs

When moving from the present to the past tense, verbs behave differently:

• Weak Verbs (Regular): The stem vowel stays the same. They add -te in the past (Präteritum) and end in -t in the Partizip II.
  • suchen — suchte — gesucht.
• Strong Verbs (Irregular): The stem vowel changes (Ablaut). They have no extra suffix in the past and end in -en in the Partizip II.
  • sprechen — sprach — gesprochen.
• Mixed Verbs: These are a hybrid. They change their vowel like strong verbs but use “weak” endings (-te and -t).
  • nennen — nannte — genannt.

6. Separable and Inseparable Verbs

Some German verbs have “prefixes” (extra bits at the start) that change the meaning.

• Separable (Trennbar): The prefix flies to the end of the sentence in simple tenses.
  • ansprechen (to address): “Er spricht die Leute an“.
• Inseparable (Untrennbar): The prefix stays attached. Common inseparable prefixes include be-, ver-, ent-, er-.
  • bearbeiten (to process): “Wir bearbeiten die Aufgabe”.

Summary Table: Quick Reference