Present Tense Verbs

Introduction to German Verbs#

In German, verbs (Verben) are action words — they tell us what someone is doing or what is happening. Learning to use verbs correctly is one of the most important parts of speaking and writing German.

Infinitive Form#

In German, the infinitive (base form) of a verb ends in -en (sometimes just -n):

• spielen — to play
• lernen — to learn
• machen — to make / to do
• laufen — to run
• sein — to be

When you look up a German verb in the dictionary, you find the infinitive form.

Personal Pronouns in German#

Before learning to conjugate (change) verbs, you need to know the German personal pronouns — the words for "I, you, he, she...":

Why Conjugation Matters#

In English, most verbs barely change: I play, you play, he plays, etc. German verbs change much more with each pronoun — this is called conjugation (Konjugation).

This is one of the first big differences you will notice between English and German. With practice, the patterns become natural and even beautiful!

A Sample Conjugation: spielen (to play)#

Notice the pattern: remove -en from the infinitive, then add the ending for each pronoun.