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Learning German verb conjugations is tricky because German verbs have more conjugation options compared to English verbs --so there鈥檚 more that our brains have to remember!

Is German Verb Conjugation Difficult?

Yes, German verb conjugation is difficult if we compare it to English verb conjugation. But, no, it鈥檚 not difficult in the sense of 鈥済oodness, I鈥檒l never be able to do this!鈥�.

If you want to speak German 鈥揺ven on the most basic level鈥� then you have to learn how to conjugate verbs. 

But there are lots of repeated patterns to German verb conjugations that make learning them way easier. 

You鈥檒l use German verb conjugations in order to 鈥�

• 鉁� Talk about yourself and others doing anything (e.g. eating, sleeping, driving, etc.).
• 鉁� Express your (or others鈥�) state of being (e.g. I was, I am, I will be 鈥� etc.) 
• 鉁� Communicate action within the context of time (e.g. I ate, I eat, I will eat, etc.).

How Many Verb Conjugations Are There In German?

There are 3-8 typical German verb base conjugations, dependent upon how we want to think about it.

If we think of each of the eight 鈥榩ersons鈥� (I, you, he/she/it, we, you [plural], you [formal, singular, and plural], they) as having their own verb conjugations, then we get 8.

8 German Verb Conjugations

Here are the 8 鈥榩ersons鈥� with their bolded conjugations of the German verb 鈥榤achen鈥� (to do; to make) in the present tense (e.g. lining up with 鈥業 do, you do, he/she/it does鈥�, etc.):

	Singular	Plural
1st	ich mache	wir machen
2nd (informal)	du machst	ihr macht
(formal)	Sie machen	Sie machen
3rd	er/sie/es macht	sie machen

If we, however, don鈥檛 count reused conjugations twice, we can get down to 4 German verb conjugations. The options -e, -st, -t, and -en all come up in the first column, so we don鈥檛 count the -en and -t when they come up again in the 2nd column:

4 German Verb Conjugations

And if we don鈥檛 count using the verb infinitive (in this case 鈥榤achen鈥� is the infinitive) as a 鈥榗onjugation鈥� per se, we can get down to just 3 German verb conjugations: 

3 German Verb Conjugations

Operating under the principle of 鈥榣ess is more鈥� seems prudent to me, so I鈥檒l teach you how to think of German verb conjugations calculated as just THREE options (-e, -st, -t) plus usage of the infinitive verb itself.

These 3 German verb conjugations are used in various tenses, moods, and voices, but in different combinations (and, of course, along with other details).

It鈥檚 best to first focus strictly on German verb conjugations in the present tense, so let鈥檚 look at them side-by-side with the English conjugations of 鈥榯o do; make鈥�:

German verb conjugations (in English)

I make

you make

he/she/it makes

we make

they make

In the English present tense, we have only two possible conjugations:

• Most of the pronouns pair simply with the infinitive verb itself: make.
• Only he / she / it actually takes a conjugation: an 鈥榮鈥� for 鈥榤akes鈥�.

These same principles apply to English verbs as a whole 鈥搕ry plugging in other common verbs such as 鈥榯o come鈥�, 鈥榯o see鈥�, or 鈥榯o bring.鈥�

Those same conjugations in German look like this:

German Verb Conjugations (Present Tense)
English vs German

English	German
I make	ich mache
you make	du machst
he/she/it makes	er/sie/es macht
we make	wir machen
they make	sie machen

Comparing German & English

It鈥檚 important to notice the patterns of similarities and differences at this point. 

Ask yourself these questions:

• Where does German 鈥榬ecycle鈥� the same conjugations?
• Are the German & English changes to German verb conjugations (to do; make) occurring with equivalent pronouns?
• Which language includes more changes compared to the other? 

How Do You Conjugate a Verb in German?

Conjugating German verbs looks different dependent upon which tense / mood is being used. Starting with Present Tense conjugations is wise.

Put into a typical conjugation table, the options are presented like this:

German Verb Conjugations in the Present Tense

Present Tense Conjugation Chart:

ich _____-e	wir _____-en
du _____-st	ihr _____-t
Sie _____-en	Sie _____-en
er/sie/es _____-t	sie _____-en

Dependent on how we slice it, we could argue for as many as EIGHT conjugations here, or as few as THREE.

Thinking of 鈥楽ie鈥�, 鈥榳ir鈥�, and 鈥榮ie鈥� as using the infinitive verb (machen, for example) is much more efficient than thinking of them as taking an -en conjugation.

That leaves us with just the -e, -st, and -t (used twice!) conjugations.

The concept of learning German verb conjugations is intimately connected to German subject (i.e. nominative) pronouns 鈥搕he two have to be understood together.

So, we need to work backward by starting with the pronouns. 

And in order to understand nominative case (i.e. subject) pronouns, we need to talk about the grammar concept of 鈥榩ersons鈥�.

(Sidenote: after you read about the nominative case in general and personal pronouns specifically, check out accusative, dative, relative, and reflexive pronouns, too!)

What are 鈥榩ersons鈥�?

The 鈥榩ersons鈥� (I, you, they, etc.) are split into two categories that interact with each other: 

There are 3 subcategories of 鈥榩ersons鈥� (1st Person, 2nd Person, and 3rd Person) and each of these has a 鈥榮ingular鈥� and a 鈥榩lural鈥� variant. 

When we intersect this information on Y and X axes, we get these ultra-familiar English subject pronouns:

English Subject Pronouns Chart

	Singular	Plural
1st	I	we
2nd	you	you
3rd	he/she/it	they

Now, here is the German version of the same table of subject pronouns: 

German Subject Pronouns Chart

	Singular	Plural
1st	ich	wir
2nd	du	ihr
3rd	er/sie/es	sie

German & English Pronouns Side-by-Side

Where do English and German line up and where are there differences?

English and German have 1-to-1 equivalents for all pronouns 鈥� except that German has extra pronouns for 鈥榶ou鈥� (highlighted).

FULL German Subject Pronouns Chart

	Singular	Plural
1st	ich	wir
2nd (informal)	du	ihr
(formal)	Sie	Sie
3rd	er/sie/es	sie

Understanding the 鈥榠hr鈥� plural of 鈥榙u鈥� is straightforward enough: Americans might relate it to the concept of 测鈥檃濒濒. We鈥檙e simply talking to multiple 鈥榶ou鈥檚 at the same time.

The formal 鈥楽ie鈥� (always capitalized!) is used in a variety of contexts to express respect, deference, or simply distance (i.e. that the two people don鈥檛 know each other well). 

It鈥檚 the same pronoun (and 鈥揳s we鈥檒l see鈥� the same verb conjugation) whether singular or plural.

The German Verb Conjugation Process: The Basics (In the Present Tense)

Conjugating German verbs is a straightforward step-by-step process:

Step 1: Select the pronoun & the verb.

Step 2: Strip the verb down to its root / stem.

Step 3: Add the conjugation that 鈥榓grees鈥� with the pronoun.

For example, if I want to say 鈥渉e hears鈥�, I know I need the pronoun 鈥榚r鈥� and the verb 鈥槼竺栋�别苍鈥�.

Stripping the verb down to its root / stem is a matter of taking off its final -en (occasionally JUST an -n). In this instance, 丑枚谤别苍 would become just 丑枚谤.

Then, we have to add a conjugation (options: -e, -st, -t) to that root / stem (OR skip step 2 entirely if we鈥檙e working with a pronoun that 鈥榯akes the infinitive鈥�).

But, of course, we can鈥檛 just pick a conjugation willy-nilly. The -e conjugation pairs with 鈥榠ch鈥�, the -st with 鈥榙u鈥�, and the -t with both 鈥榚r / sie / es鈥� and 鈥榠hr鈥� as we can see here:

Present Tense Conjugation Chart:

ich _____-e	wir _____-en
du _____-st	ihr _____-t
Sie _____-en	Sie _____-en
er/sie/es _____-t	sie _____-en

In English, it would be incorrect to say 鈥淚 makes鈥� or 鈥渉e make鈥�. 

Just so, it鈥檚 crucial to speak German with the correct pairing (or 鈥榓greement鈥�) between pronouns and conjugations.

Conjugating German verbs really isn鈥檛 that hard once you have a little terminology and a few principles under your belt.

Regular German Verbs

Regular (also called 鈥榳eak鈥�) German verbs will follow just our 3-step process above with no additional changes in the present tense. 

We'll look here at the regular / weak verb 'machen' (to make / do).

 Regular German Verb Conjugations (Present Tense)

English	German
I make	ich mache
you make	du machst
you (all) make	ihr macht
you [form.] make	Sie machen
he/she/it makes	er/sie/es macht
we make	wir machen
they make	sie machen

Remember that German has additional forms of 鈥榶ou鈥� (Sie, ihr) that don鈥檛 exist as such in English (and thus are italicized to indicate what the equivalents would be). 

In the Simple Past tense, regular verbs insert a 鈥榯鈥� between the stem / root (e.g. 鈥榤ach鈥�) and the typical conjugations, except that now both 鈥榠ch鈥� and 鈥榚r / sie / es鈥� will take an -e conjugation:

Regular German Verb Conjugations (Simple Past Tense)

English	German
I made	ich machte
you made	du machtest
you (all) made	ihr machtet
you [form.] made	Sie machten
he/she/it made	er/sie/es machte
we made	wir machten
they made	sie machten

Notice how in English we have literally just one option (i.e. made) compared to German鈥檚 3 options. Other points of interest are:

• Regular verbs in the Simple Past tense use matching forms for 鈥榠ch鈥� and 鈥榚r /sie /es鈥� 鈥搃t鈥檚 both ich machte and er / sie / es machte.
• We can think of the 鈥榬oot + t鈥� (e.g. mach + t) as being the new 鈥楽imple Past鈥� root.
• Anytime any stem/root ends with 鈥榯鈥� (in any tense/mood!), an 鈥榚鈥� is inserted before an -st or -t conjugation (du machtest, ihr machtet). 

Irregular German Verbs 

Of the irregular (i.e. strong) German verbs, about 25% of them need a Step #4 added to the Conjugation Process.

After getting our subject and verb to 鈥榓gree鈥�, the verbs for 鈥榙u鈥� and 鈥榚r / sie / es鈥� will take one additional change called a 鈥榮tem-vowel change鈥�.

Let鈥檚 look at the example of sehen (to see), which is one of the 25% of irregular / strong verbs that takes a 鈥榮tem-vowel change鈥� for du and er / sie / es.

Irregular German Verb Conjugations (Present Tense)

English	German
I see	ich sehe
you see	du siehst
you (all) see	ihr seht
you [form.] see	Sie sehen
he/she/it sees	er/sie/es sieht
we see	wir sehen
they see	sie sehen

All the same subjects that 鈥榯ake the infinitive鈥� (i.e. sehen), still do. All the conjugation pairings are also still the same (ich + -e, du + -st, er / sie / es and ihr + t).

But, we can see how the root itself 鈥揺specially its vowel鈥� changes for du and er / sie / es from seh- (used everywhere else!) to sieh-.

In the Simple Past tense, ALL irregular verbs will change their vowels for ALL persons, so that鈥檚 more straightforward.

Irregular German Verb Conjugations (Simple Past Tense)

English	German
I saw	ich sah
you saw	du sahst
you (all) saw	ihr saht
you [form.] saw	Sie sahen
he/she/it saw	er/sie/es sah
we saw	wir sahen
they saw	sie sahen

Irregular / strong verbs in the Simple Past tense operate just like regular / weak verbs in that: 

• the infinitive form is still paired with all the same pronouns that take the infinitive in the present tense, too (i.e. wir, Sie, sie). 
• both ich and er / sie / es take the same conjugation, so they will match.

However, there are also two distinctions:

• the irregular Simple Past infinitive entails a vowel change (instead of the added 鈥榯鈥� for weak verbs).
• ich and er / sie / es drop conjugations altogether (vs. the shared -e for weak verbs), yet still match by virtue of using the simple past tense root (e.g. sah).

What Are The 3 Forms of Verbs In German? 

The 3 forms of verbs in German are the infinitive, the 3rd person singular simple past root, and the past participle.

Knowing these principal forms of German verbs sets you up to make all other necessary changes (i.e. conjugations) factoring in the 5 interwoven elements of person, number, tense, mood, and voice.

German Verb Infinitives

The form of the verb that is easiest to look up in a dictionary is the 鈥榠nfinitive form鈥�. English verb infinitives always include a 鈥榯o鈥�: to eat, to sleep, to drive.

German verb infinitives exist mostly with an 鈥�-en鈥� at the end:

10 Common German Verb Infinitives

• haben (to have)
• machen (to do; make)
• gehen (to go)
• lesen (to read)
• essen (to eat)
• fahren (to drive)
• schreiben (to write)
• kommen (to come)
• geben (to give)
• 尘枚驳别苍 (to like)

There are small bodies of German verb infinitives that end with -ern or -eln (e.g. wandern [to hike] and 濒盲肠丑别濒苍 [to smile]). And there are also the two outlier verbs sein (to be) and tun (to do).

Simple Past German Verb Roots

The Simple Past tense in English is, for example, I had, I did, I went, I drove, I ate, etc.

German doesn鈥檛 actually use the Simple Past tense with the same frequency (German prefers the Present Perfect tense, which would technically translate to, e.g. I have had, I have gone, I have eaten, etc., but the meaning lines up with I had, I went, I ate, etc.).

But, even still, learning the Simple Past tense in German is important (it鈥檚 used in narrative, for example, particularly in books). And learning this tense for one 鈥榩erson鈥� in particular is very handy鈥�

If you learn the 3rd Person Singular (he/she/it) form of the Simple Past tense for each verb, it clues you into how to form the 鈥�

• 鉁� Simple Past tense for all the other persons
• 鉁� Imperfect Subjunctive mood 
• 鉁� past participle (sometimes)

For example, here are those same 10 verb infinitives with their 3rd Person Singular Simple Past tenses forms next to them:

10 Common German Verb Simple Past Verbs

• haben (to have)
• machen (to do; make)
• gehen (to go)
• lesen (to read)
• essen (to eat)
• fahren (to drive)
• schreiben (to write)
• kommen (to come)
• geben (to give)
• 尘枚驳别苍 (to like)

Learning the Simple Past tense conjugation for he / she / it is also a helpful indication of whether the verb in question is a weak, strong, or mixed verb 鈥搘hich knowledge, in turn, may help you form the Present Tense and the past participle.

German Verb Past Participles

Every German verb has a past participle form and you will use them a lot!

Past Participles in English are verb forms such as 鈥榞one鈥�, 鈥榮ung鈥�, and 鈥榚aten鈥� that are always paired with what鈥檚 called a 鈥榟elping鈥� (or 鈥榓uxiliary) verb to give us have gone, have sung, and have eaten.

Past Participles are used with the passive voice (er wurde gesehen 鈥榟e was seen鈥�), in 3 鈥楶erfect鈥� tenses (Ich habe / hatte gesehen 鈥業 have / had seen鈥� and Ich werde gesehen haben 鈥業 will have seen鈥�), and in the Subjunctive mood (e.g. Ich 丑盲迟迟别 gesehen 鈥業 would have seen鈥�).

How a German verb forms its past participle is largely a function of whether it鈥檚 a regular, irregular, or mixed verb (and irregular verbs have three possible ways of forming past participles).

Regular / Weak Verbs

Regular (i.e. weak) verbs form their past participles with this formula: ge + infinitive root + t
Thus, we鈥檇 get the past participle 鈥榞emacht鈥� from the regular / weak verb 鈥榤achen鈥� (to do; make). 

Here are some other examples of common regular / weak verbs and their participles, so you can see this formula multiple times:

kaufen (to buy) 鈥� gekauft
arbeiten (to work) 鈥�gearbeitet
wollen (to want) 鈥� gewollt
sollen (to should) 鈥� gesollt

CAUTION: some German-learners find it helpful to reframe the 鈥榞e + infinitive root + t鈥� formula into 鈥榞e + 3rd Person Singular (i.e. he / she / it) Present Tense conjugation: 

It would be er / sie / es 鈥�

kauft (buys)
arbeitet (works)

So, that鈥檚 functional鈥� But er / sie /es 鈥榳ollt鈥� and 鈥荣辞濒濒迟鈥� (among a few other examples) would be incorrect, which is why working with the 鈥榞e + infinitive root + t鈥� formula is superior.

Irregular / Strong Verbs

Irregular (i.e. strong) verbs create past participles with a ge + root + en. So, the 鈥榞e鈥� is a shared commonality with weak verbs, but the 鈥榚n鈥� is in contrast to the 鈥榯鈥�. 

Furthermore, the 鈥榬oot鈥� is one of 3 options:

• infinitive root (like weak/regular verbs)
• simple past root (1 reason why learning this verb form helps us!)
• past participle root (if you will鈥�)

A better way to think of these options is in 鈥榙egrees of vowel change鈥�, which can be visually depicted:

Some strong verbs create a mountain, for example: 

schlafen 鈥� schlief 鈥� hat geschlafen ([to] sleep 鈥� slept 鈥� have slept)

In this example, we start out with an 鈥榓鈥� in the infinitive root, then see that vowel change in the Simple Past tense, only to return to the original vowel in the past participle.

Other strong verbs make a plateau, for example: 

schreiben 鈥� schrieb 鈥� hat geschrieben ([to] write 鈥� wrote 鈥� have written)

In this example, the vowel in the infinitive root changes in the Simple Past tense and then remains changed for the past participle.

Finally, some strong verbs form an ascending line, for example:

singen 鈥� sang 鈥� hat gesungen ([to] sing 鈥� sang 鈥� have sung)

Notice the root vowel changing twice: from 鈥榠鈥� to 鈥榓鈥� in the Simple Past tense, but then again to 鈥榰鈥� for the past participle.

Important Notes:

• Notice that 鈥搃n English!-- 鈥榯o sleep鈥� would be a 鈥榩lateau鈥� verb, not a mountain. In contrast, 鈥榯o write鈥� would be more so a 鈥榤ountain鈥� and not 鈥榩lateau鈥�! 
• However, many German and English verbs do line up very nicely with their number and type of changes 鈥搇ike with the cognate 鈥�singen鈥� / to sing.
• Just as in English, German past participles must be paired with a helping / auxiliary verb. 
• In English, the helping verb is always the present tense of 鈥榯o have鈥�; German uses haben (to have) in this way, too; but also has a 2nd option: the usage of sein (to be). 

Mixed Verbs 

There is a small body of German verbs that are halfway weak and halfway strong.

These verbs take a vowel change in the Simple Past tense (like strong verbs), keep that vowel change for the past participle (like 鈥榩lateau鈥� strong verbs), but use a 鈥榯鈥� instead of 鈥榚n鈥� (like weak verbs).

The common verb 鈥榙enken鈥� (to think) is a great example:

denken 鈥� dachte 鈥� gedacht ([to] think 鈥� [he / she / it] thought 鈥� have thought)

Other Common Mixed Verbs:

kennen (to be acquainted with)
bringen (to bring)
rennen (to run)
nennen (to name)
brennen (to burn)

Important Notes:

• The verbs 鈥榮enden鈥� (to send, transmit) and 鈥榳enden鈥� (to turn) are in the middle of changing from regular to mixed verbs (and perhaps someday will be full-out strong verbs). Thus, they have regular forms (senden 鈥� sendete 鈥� gesendet; wenden 鈥� wendete 鈥� gewendet) and mixed forms (senden 鈥� sandte 鈥� gesandt; wenden - wandte 鈥� gewandt). The mixed forms are more common, but the regular forms still have specific uses.
• Some might characterize 鈥榟aben鈥� (to have) and 鈥榳issen鈥� (to know) as mixed verbs, but these are better thought of as belonging to a separate category of verbs, in my opinion (see Oddball Verbs below).

-IEREN Verbs

German verbs that end with specifically -ieren (remember that nearly all German verbs end with 鈥榚n鈥�) are a subset of regular / weak verbs.

Their past participles, accordingly, end with 鈥榯鈥�. But -ieren verbs do not take a 鈥榞e鈥�. 

Examples:

studieren 鈥� studierte 鈥� hat studiert ([to] study 鈥� studied 鈥� have studied)
telefonieren 鈥�telefonierte 鈥� hat telefoniert ([to] telephone - telephoned 鈥� have telephoned)
reservieren 鈥� reservierte 鈥� hat reserviert ([to] reserve 鈥� reserved 鈥� have reserved)

Notice that these verbs follow the predictable formulations for weak / regular German verbs in all ways except for taking that 鈥榞e鈥�. Also, these verbs are generally also weak/regular verbs in English. 

Oddball Verbs

Thankfully, there aren鈥檛 many oddball verbs in German. But what few we have are additionally tricky. 

They often follow patterns of strong verb changes, but then will more 鈥搖npredictable鈥� changes on top of that.

Two oddball verbs mentioned above are these:

haben 鈥� hatte 鈥� hat gehabt ([to] have 鈥� had 鈥� have had)
wissen 鈥� wusste 鈥� hat gewusst ([to] know 鈥� knew 鈥� have known)

If we look just at these forms, we鈥檇 think we鈥檙e dealing simply with two mixed verbs. 

However, if we鈥檇 look at the Present Tense conjugations for these verbs, we鈥檇 see a lot of other 鈥榦ddball鈥� changes that fall outside of even strong / irregular verb predictability.

How Do You Memorize German Verb Conjugations?

The best way to memorize German verb conjugations is by repetitiously applying them to short & simple 鈥榮entence drills鈥�.

鈥楧rilling鈥� German verb conjugations is a matter of practicing the pairings (or 鈥榓greement鈥�) between the subject and verb while changing as little else as possible.

Examples of German Verb Conjugations

Although there are reasons for learning the simple past tense conjugations down the road, for now, knowing how to use German verb conjugations in the present tense is exactly what you should focus on. 

Check out these examples with the regular / weak German verb 鈥�machen鈥� (to do; make):

1st Person, Singular & Plural

Ich mache ein Butterbrot. (I am making a sandwich.)
Ich mache die Aufgabe. (I am doing the task.)

Wir machen ein Butterbrot. (We are making a sandwich.)
Wir machen die Aufgabe. (We are doing the task.)

2nd Person (Informal), Singular & Plural

Du machst ein Butterbrot. (You are making a sandwich.)
Du machst die Aufgabe. (You are doing the task.)

Ihr macht ein Butterbrot. (You are making a sandwich.)
Ihr macht die Aufgabe. (You are doing the task.)

2nd Person (Formal), Singular & Plural

Sie machen ein Butterbrot. (You are making a sandwich.)
Sie machen die Aufgabe. (You are doing the task.)

Sie machen ein Butterbrot. (You are making a sandwich.)
Sie machen die Aufgabe. (You are doing the task.)

3rd Person, Singular & Plural

Der Junge macht ein Butterbrot. (The boy is making a sandwich.)
Der Junge macht die Aufgabe. (The boy is doing the task.)

Die Jungen machen ein Butterbrot. (The boys are making a sandwich.)
Die Jungen machen die Aufgabe. (The boys are doing the task.)

Notice in all these examples that we are using Standard Word Order, which puts the conjugated verb in position 2. Learn more about German Sentence Structure and German Word Order here --verbs are power players!

To expand your German-learning beyond verbs, make note of these points!

1) In addition to the 'ein', we have FIVE other slightly different way to say 'a / an' in German. Similarly, there are six total ways to say 'the' (like the 'die' and 'der' in the above examples). Learn more about German 'Articles' here.

2) All German nouns --such as 'Butterbrot', 'Junge' and 'Aufgabe'-- have gender and case, which involves something tricky called declensions. Learning how to conjugate verbs is an important piece to the puzzle, but in order to truly speak German, you'll also have to learn how to work with German nouns!

3) Most German nouns --such as 'Junge'-- also have plural forms ('Jungen'). Expectedly, German noun plurals are more finicky than English-speakers are used to, but don't worry ... I break it down for you!

How To Practice German Verb Conjugations

Practicing German verb conjugations requires a multi-faceted approach:

1. Raise your awareness 
2. Analyze authentic German
3. Create your own drills
4. Practice monitored speaking
5. Go 鈥榦ut into the wild鈥�!

Raise Your Awareness

It鈥檚 a powerful step to simply start recognizing German verb conjugations as such when you see or hear them.

So, whenever you work with an app, read a book, watch a show, or listen to music in German, try to tune into those subject-verb agreements.

Analyze Authentic German

If you鈥檙e going to the trouble of paying attention to German verb conjugations to begin with, you might as well really think about what you鈥檙e seeing and hearing.

Instead of just noticing a conjugation, take the time to break it down. Make sure that you can identify the root / stem of the verb and how it鈥檚 connecting to the conjugation.

Explicitly repeat to yourself the connection between the given subject and its conjugation (e.g. It鈥檚 鈥榠ch mache鈥� because the -e conjugation attaches to the root 鈥榤ach鈥� and pairs with 鈥榠ch鈥�). 

Create Your Own Drills

Following the patterns I鈥檝e set for you above, write your own short, simple sentences in order to systematically practice subject-verb agreement for all persons.

Your goal is to conjugate not only weak verbs but also common strong verbs (including those with stem-vowel changes) without referencing charts or needing to think about it too hard.

Once you鈥檙e feeling pretty confident with the present tense, move onto the simple past tense (literally just re-writing the drills you already have into this new tense).

From there, you can practice working with past participles in the 3 鈥榩erfect鈥� tenses, the passive voice, and the subjunctive mood, all of which also entails using present and/or past conjugations of select verbs (i.e. sein, haben, & werden).

Practice Monitored Speaking

It鈥檚 important to have a German-speaker look over your drills (previous step) and to guide you through intentional speaking practice. 

You need someone who not only is fluent in German, but who is a good teacher (i.e. quick to kindly correct you; capable of explaining the 鈥榳hy鈥� behind corrections). 

You need to be confident that the German you鈥檙e hearing from this person is authentic. And you also need to trust that they鈥檙e not letting various mistakes slide simply because 鈥榯hey can still understand you鈥�.

Go 鈥極ut Into The Wild鈥�!

After safely incubating your German with your trusted teacher, you鈥檒l feel ready to go ahead and speak German with anyone, anywhere. 

Will you still make mistakes? Sure.

Will you continue learning? You bet!

But you鈥檒l be working from a solid foundation that won鈥檛 let you down severely. Even though your German won鈥檛 be flawless, there won鈥檛 be cause for embarrassment.

You can feel confident that you鈥檙e expressing yourself adequately well and might even avoid Germans quickly reverting to speaking English with you.

You鈥檝e got this!!!

German Verb Conjugations in ALL Tenses & Moods

German verb conjugations are used in 6 tenses (of the indicative mood), and in two additional moods (the subjunctive and imperative). 

We use German verb conjugations to talk about actions in the past, present, and future (e.g. I was, I am, I will be). German verb conjugations are also used to say 鈥業 would be鈥� (subjunctive) or to give a command such as 鈥榖e quiet!鈥�

For those of you who are ready for it, here are the full conjugation tables for German verb conjugations utilizing the regular / weak verb 鈥榤achen鈥� (to do; make):

Indicative (Indikativ)

The indicative mood is how we talk most of the time: about real facts (I鈥檓 making a sandwich. He made a mistake. Are you making fun of her? Will we make good time?) 

The indicative mood subcategories into SIX tenses in both English and German. Most of these tenses are used very similarly. 

It鈥檚 essential to learn the Present Tense first, and then the Present Perfect. After that, you鈥檒l get the most utility out of the Simple Future, then Simple Past, then Past Perfect, and then Future Perfect.

Present (Pr盲sens)

Notice the recycled usage of the infinitive 鈥榤achen鈥�. Notice the -e conjugation paired with ich, the -st paired with du and the -t paired with both er / sie / es and ihr.

Recall that 25% of strong / irregular verbs will also require stem-vowel changes in the 2nd and 3rd persons singular (e.g. ich sehe, *du siehst, *er / sie / es sieht, etc.)

Bear in mind that the present tense conjugations of 鈥榤achen鈥� would equate all three present tense possibilities in English: I make, I am making, I do make.

Simple Past (Pr盲teritum)

If we compare the simple past tense to the present tense, here are the similarities and differences:

• all the same persons still 鈥榯ake the infinitive鈥� (which either has an added 鈥榯鈥� [weak verbs] or a vowel change [strong & mixed verbs])
• 鈥榙u鈥� still uses an -st conjugation; 鈥榠hr鈥� still uses a -t.
• 鈥榠ch鈥� and 鈥榚r / sie / es鈥� will now match, either by taking an -e conjugation (weak & mixed verbs) or no conjugation at all (strong verbs).

鈥楳achen鈥� conjugated for the simple past tense equates I did, you did, etc.

Although English-speakers prefer the simple past tense when talking about events in the past, this tense in German has more restricted usage.

Present Perfect (Perfekt)

Notice that this tense is formed by conjugating 鈥榟aben鈥� in the present tense and coupling it with the past participle of 鈥榤achen鈥�, namely gemacht.

Bear in mind that this principle would be the same for strong verbs, too.

However, be aware that some verbs combine with present tense conjugations of 鈥榮ein鈥� (to be), not 鈥榟aben鈥� (to have), which is a departure from how this tense works in English.

鈥楳achen鈥� in the present perfect tense equates 鈥業 have done, you have done,鈥� etc. except that the usage of this tense in German lines up more with when English-speakers would say 鈥業 did, you did, etc.鈥�

In other words, generally speaking, whenever you鈥檇 use the simple past tense in English, be sure to use the present perfect tense in German, instead.

Past Perfect (Plusquamperfekt)

To formulate this tense, you work with the same past participle used for the Present Perfect tense (every verb has only one past participle anyway) and you use the same helping verb (either 鈥榟aben鈥� or 鈥榮ein鈥�). 

But now, that helping verb has to be conjugated in the simple past tense vs. the present tense! The result is 鈥業 had made / done鈥� (but then adjusted for all persons).

Simple Future (Futur I)

This tense is made by using 鈥榤achen鈥� (the 鈥榤ain鈥� verb) in its infinitive form, paired with 鈥榳erden鈥�, conjugated in the present tense to communicate 鈥業 will do/make鈥�, etc.

However, note that the Simple Future tense is frequently avoided in German in favor of the Present tense and a time adverbial (e.g. Ich mache morgen einen Ausflug鈥� [I鈥檒l do, i.e. go on, an excursion tomorrow]).

Future Perfect (Futur II)

This perfect tense would be used in conjunction with other information presented in the simple future tense in order to talk about two future events relative to each other.

Thankfully, the future perfect 鈥業 will have done/made鈥�, etc. is not frequently used in either English or German. Both languages prefer simpler 鈥榳orkarounds鈥� that utilize other tenses.

Two future events are often colloquially expressed in German by using the Simple Future + time adverbial + Present Tense. In spoken English, the Simple Future + time adverbial + Present Perfect is preferred.

Imperative (Imperativ)

The imperative mood is used in both English and German for giving commands. Note that a 鈥榙u鈥� or 鈥榠hr鈥� subject is generally omitted, but that a 鈥榳ir鈥� and 鈥楽ie鈥� must be present.

Notice that while 鈥榳ir鈥�, 鈥楽ie鈥� (singular / plural) and 鈥榠hr鈥� retain their typical conjugations, the 鈥榙u鈥� uses just the verb root/stem (i.e. with no conjugation at all) OR optionally adds an 鈥榚鈥� conjugation in colloquial German.

Of course, it bears mentioning that the imperative mood is used ONLY in the present tense.

Subjunctive (Konjunktiv)

The subjunctive mood is used in both English and German (but much more frequently in German!) to communicate hypothetical (i.e. not factual [indicative]) situations. 

The subjunctive can be used to communicate a present or future likelihood (but not certainty) OR a complete impossibility in the past, present, or future. 

The subjunctive is also used for expressing polite requests vs. the commands of the imperative mood.

Present Subjunctive (Konjunktiv I) 

The present tense of the subjunctive mood is heard most often in the context of relayed news 鈥揵e that in a TV news report, in a written newspaper, or via your gossipy neighbor.

It鈥檚 the German way of appropriately distancing oneself from potential facts 鈥搚ou鈥檙e passing along what someone else has said is true, but you鈥檙e not personally vouching for its accuracy.

Thus, this tense is most often used in the 3rd person singular because you鈥檙e speaking (with a 2nd person) about a 3rd person who has supposedly said / done something:

Er hat mir gemeint, dass sein Bruder Bankrott mache. (He told me that his brother is going bankrupt.)

Notice the use of Konjunktiv I in German (bolded) vs. the regular present tense in English (bolded).

Past Subjunctive (Konjunktiv II) 

This tense of the subjunctive is generally less and less used all the time. It鈥檚 still most definitely used for the 3 key verbs sein, haben, & werden, however. 

And, in fact, it鈥檚 the 鈥楰onjunktiv II鈥� form of 鈥榳erden鈥� (鈥榳眉rden鈥�) that is combined with virtually all other verbs in order to create a workaround for this tense.

So, for example, instead of using the 鈥榯rue鈥� past subjunctive forms of 鈥榤achen鈥�, you鈥檇 be far more likely to hear / see written / need to use these combinations:

Ich w眉rde 鈥� machen (I would do 鈥�)
Du w眉rdest 鈥� machen (you would do 鈥�)
Er/ sie/ es w眉rde 鈥� machen (he/ she/ it would do 鈥�)
Wir w眉rden 鈥� machen (We would do 鈥�)
Ihr w眉rdet 鈥� machen (Y鈥檃ll would do 鈥�)
Sie w眉rden 鈥� machen (They / you [formal] would do 鈥�)

Notice how conveniently this nearly ubiquitous workaround variant lines up with the English equivalent (if you think of the forms of 鈥榳眉rden鈥� as meaning 鈥榳ould鈥�). 

And remember to follow standard German word order rules that place the conjugated verb (in this instance: the form of 鈥榳眉rden鈥�) in position 2 and the infinitive verb (here: machen) at the end of the clause.

Perfect Subjunctive (Konjunktiv Perfekt) 

Just like the Konjunktiv I, this tense is most likely to be used for the 3rd person singular in order to convey uncertainty whether the given information is indeed factual.

The Konjunktiv Perfekt (and the Konjunktiv I, for that matter) could also potentially be used to communicate to whomever you鈥檙e addressing that you don鈥檛 100% believe what they鈥檙e telling you, for example:

Hmm鈥� Du habest / Ihr habet schon die Hausaufgaben gemacht?
(Hmm鈥� you / y鈥檃ll already finished your homework?)

The doubtfulness is communicated strictly via tone 鈥揳nd simply utilizing the Perfect-Indicative in English (which would also certainly be the more common way in German).

But German does technically have this particular mood/tense combo to convey lack of belief (even if its current usage is quite seldom because it鈥檇 be considered very elevated speech).

Past Perfect Subjunctive (Konjunktiv Plusquamperfekt) 

This subjunctive tense is still very commonly used. The 鈥榩ast perfect subjuntive鈥� forms of haben and sein are combined with the main verb鈥檚 past participle in order to convey the concept of 鈥榳ould have XY鈥�).

Ich 丑盲迟迟别 dir geholfen, wenn nur 鈥� (I would have helped you, if only 鈥�)
Er 飞盲谤别 mitgekommen, wenn nur 鈥� (He would have come with, if only 鈥�)

Whether you need to use the Konjunktiv II version of 鈥榟aben鈥� or 鈥榮ein鈥� is a matter of which of these 2 helping verbs your main verb (e.g. 鈥榟elfen鈥� [to help] and 鈥榢ommen鈥� [to come]) pairs with in any relevant indicative tenses.

You鈥檇 say 鈥業ch habe / hatte dir geholfen鈥� (I [have] helped you) and thus 鈥業ch 丑盲迟迟别 [not 飞盲谤别] dir geholfen鈥� in the past perfect subjunctive.

So, likewise, you鈥檇 say 鈥楨r ist / war gekommen鈥� (He came / had come) and thus 鈥楨r 飞盲谤别 [not 丑盲迟迟别] gekommen鈥� in the past perfect subjunctive.

Future Subjunctive (Konjunktiv Futur I) 

Both this tense (and also the Future Perfect Subjunctive) could theoretically be used in more formal or otherwise 鈥榚levated鈥� contexts for 鈥榙u鈥�, 鈥榠hr鈥�, or 鈥榚r/ sie /es鈥� in order to express doubt/uncertainty that the given thing will actually come to pass.

Future Perfect Subjunctive (Konjunktiv Futur II)

This tense 鈥搇ike the Konj. Futur I as well as the Konj. I and Konj. Perf.-- is more likely to be avoided by virtue of simply using the indicative mood coupled with a 鈥榟e said / she said鈥� sort of utterance:

Er hat gemeint, er wird [werde] die Aufgabe bis morgen fertiggemacht haben.(He said he will have completed the task by tomorrow).

In English and German alike, though, the Futur II (even in the indicative) is not preferred, so the same idea is mostly likely to be communicated in the 鈥榝aux future鈥� tense like this:

Er meint, er macht bis morgen die Aufgabe fertig.(He says he [will] complete the task by tomorrow).