Tenses

Past tense

Perfekt

The most often used past tense, which is mainly used in dialogues, conversations and correspondence, especially in the oral form. It is also used in press and books, but in this case very often the past tense Präteritum is used.

Examples of sentences in the Perfekt tense

  • Translation
  • I made a party at my place on Saturday.
  • Translation
  • We received your E-Mail.
  • Translation
  • I went/drove to Berlin yesterday.
  • Translation
  • Three people died in an accident in southern Germany.
  • Translation
  • The police found the killer.

Building sentences in the Perfekt tense

Subjekt + haben/sein + Partizip II

The subject (Subjekt) is the person or thing performing the action, followed by one of the conjugated auxiliary verbs (haben/sein), and then the Partizip II form (for regular verbs: ge- + verb stem + -t, for irregular verbs the Partizip II form needs to be learned by heart). For separable verbs the ge- prefix is placed between the prefix of the separable verb and the verb e.g. ein|kaufen 👉 eingekauft (to shop).

  • Translation
  • We made a huge progress.
  • Explanation
  • wir + machen 👉 wir + haben + ge- + mach + -t 👉 wir haben gemacht
  • Translation
  • She travelled to China on business.
  • Explanation
  • sie + reisen 👉 sie + sein + ge- + reis + -t 👉 sie ist gereist
Person haben + machen (Partizip II) sein + reisen (Partizip II)
ich habe gemacht bin gereist
du hast gemacht bist gereist
er/sie/es hat gemacht ist gereist
wir haben gemacht sind gereist
ihr habt gemacht seid gereist
sie/Sie haben gemacht sind gereist

Applications of the Perfekt tense

Verbs that use haben as an auxiliary verb
Transitive verbs (i.e. those with an active voice and a passive voice) that appear with the object in the accusative case (Akkusativobjekt)
  • Translation
  • He cleaned up his room.
  • Explanation
  • das Zimmer 👉 Akkusativobjekt; Passiv: Sein Zimmer ist [von ihm] geputzt worden. (Passive: The/His room was cleaned [by him].)
  • Translation
  • I brought my bike into the basement.
  • Explanation
  • das Fahrrad 👉 Akkusativobjekt; Passiv: Das Fahrad ist [von mir] in den Keller gestellt worden. (Passive: The bicycle was brought into the basement [by me].)
Intransitive verbs (the ones that cannot make a passive sentence) which don't describe motion with a change of location or a change of state
  • Translation
  • She has begun (or she began).
  • Explanation
  • This sentence cannot be built in the passive voice.
  • Translation
  • We slept.
  • Explanation
  • This sentence cannot be built in the passive voice.
Impersonal verbs

It applies in particular to the verbs describing the precipitations.

  • Translation
  • It rained.
  • Translation
  • There was a shortage of medicines. (Alternatively: The medicines were missing.)
Reflexive and reciprocal verbs
  • Translation
  • I got lost.
  • Translation
  • We loved each other.
  • Translation
  • I should have / I wanted / I wasn't allowed to / I had to / I could / I liked
Other verbs

Other verbs that might not fall into any of the aforementioned categories (most of verbs in German use haben as an auxiliary verb).

  • Translation
  • I helped my mother.
  • Explanation
  • meiner Mutter 👉 Dativobjekt
Verbs that use sein as an auxiliary verb
Intransitive verbs (i.e. those that do not have a passive voice) in which there is a change of place / position
  • Translation
  • The train has already left.
  • Translation
  • We ran through the woods today.
Intransitive verbs that describe a change of state
  • Translation
  • He got sick.
  • Translation
  • They fell asleep.
  • Translation
  • The lake is frozen.
The verbs bleiben, sein, werden
  • Translation
  • She stayed at home yesterday.
  • Translation
  • It was a good choice.
  • Translation
  • Today I became a father.
Some verbs derived from verbs using the auxiliary verb sein

Many intransitive verbs that don't describe a motion with a change of location or a change of state, but instead are derived from verbs that use sein as an auxiliary verb

  • Translation
  • He took the risk.
  • Explanation
  • The verb ein|gehen (to undertake) doesn't involve a movement or change of state, but it is derived from the verb gehen, which uses the auxiliary verb sein.
  • Translation
  • I assumed that the company would solve this problem soon.
  • Explanation
  • The verb davon aus|gehen [.., dass] (to assume [that]) doesn't involve a movement or change of state, but it is derived from the verb gehen, which takes the auxiliary verb sein.

Exceptions

  • Translation
  • A young woman committed suicide.

Exceptions and special cases

The verbs stehen, sitzen and liegen

The aforementioned verbs generally use the auxiliary verb haben, but in the following regions: southern Germany (DE Süd), Austria (AT) and Switzerland (CH), the auxiliary verb sein is used instead.

  • Translation
  • I was sitting in the armchair.
  • Translation
  • He was lying on the bed.
  • Translation
  • The chair was (literally stood) on the floor.
The verb tanzen

The verb tanzen uses the auxiliary verb haben, unless the rest of the sentence explicitly involves a change of location.

  • Translation
  • I danced breakdance.
  • Explanation
  • We refer to dancing here rather as a hobby or occupation instead of an activity with a change of location.
  • Translation
  • We danced till late at night.
  • Explanation
  • We refer to dancing here as an activity without a change of location.
  • Translation
  • He danced with his partner across the room.
  • Explanation
  • Dancing in this case describes a movement with a change of location, e.g. from one end of the room to the other.
The verbs klettern, schwimmen, tauchen, joggen

The aforementioned verbs must use the auxiliary verb sein if the rest of the sentence describes a change of location. Otherwise, the auxiliary verb haben may also be used.

  • Translation
  • He climbed to the peak. 👉 He climbed for three hours.
  • Explanation
  • In the first sentence, the action involves a change of location (to the peak of the mountain); thus, the auxiliary verb sein must be used. On the other hand, in the second sentence haben may also be used.
  • Translation
  • I swam across the lake. 👉 I swam for two hours.
  • Explanation
  • In the first sentence, the action involves a change of location (through the lake); thus, the auxiliary verb sein must be used. On the other hand, in the second sentence haben may also be used.
  • Translation
  • She ran along the street. 👉 She liked to run.
  • Explanation
  • In the first sentence, the action involves a change of location (along the street); thus, the auxiliary verb sein must be used. On the other hand, in the second sentence haben may also be used.
  • Translation
  • I dived to the bottom. 👉 I dived often/a lot on vacation.
  • Explanation
  • In the first sentence, the action involves a change of location (to the bottom); thus, the auxiliary verb sein must be used. On the other hand, in the second sentence haben may also be used.
Verbs ending with -iren don't get the ge- prefix
  • Translation
  • The company lowered the price of the product.
  • Translation
  • They didn't respect their clients.
Inseparable verbs do not get the prefix ge-
  • Translation
  • I misunderstood you.
  • Explanation
  • The prefix miss- is inseparable in this case.
  • Translation
  • He hugged his mom.
  • Explanation
  • The prefix um- is inseparable.
  • Translation
  • I signed the contract.
  • Explanation
  • The prefix unter- is inseparable in this case.
Separable verbs

For separable verbs, the prefix ge- is placed between the separable prefix and the verb e.g. ein|kaufen (to shop) 👉 ein + ge + kauf + t 👉 eingekauft

  • Translation
  • I invited a lot of people to the party.
  • Explanation
  • ein|laden - to invite; irregular and separable verb