Ablaut Class 1a

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Ablaut Class 1a - GermanGerman Strong-Verb Conjugation Patterns

Principal Parts - ei - i - i

German Verb English Meaning

beien, biss, gebissen bite, bit, bitten

bleichen, blich, geblichen bleach, bleached, bleached

gleichen, glich, geglichen resemble, resembled, resembled

gleiten, glitt, geglitten glide, glided, glided

greifen, griff, gegriffen grasp, grasped, grasped

leiden, litt, gelitten suffer, suffered, suffered

pfeifen, pfiff, gepfiffen whistle, whistled, whistled

reien, riss, gerissen tear, tore, torn

reiten, ritt, geritten ride, rode, ridden

scheien, schiss, geschissen shit, shitted (shat), shitted

schleichen, schlich, geschlichen sneak, sneaked, sneaked

schleifen, schliff, geschliffen polish, polished, polished

schmeien, schmiss, geschmissen toss, tossed, tossed

schneiden, schnitt, geschnitten cut, cut, cut

schreiten, schritt, geschritten step, stepped, stepped

spleien, spliss, gesplissen splice, spliced, splicedstreichen, strich, gestrichen spread, spread, spread

streiten, stritt, gestritten argue, argued, argued

weichen, wich, gewichen retreat, retreated, retreated

Also see the ei-ie-ie verbs (bleiben, schreiben,

German Strong Verbs

Ab laut Classes

Strong-verb vowel patterns in German

ablautn. [G, fr. ab away from +Lautsound] (1849)

a systematic variation of vowels in the same root oraffix or in related roots or affixes esp. in the Indo-European

languages that is usu. paralleled by differences in use or

meaning (as in sing, sang, sung, song)

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There are seven main ablaut classes or categories found in the conjugation of verbs in modern

Germanic languages (German, Dutch, English, etc.). These vowel-shift patterns make it easier to learnhow to conjugate strong verbs in German. Some German verbs even follow the identical English vowel

pattern: German trinken, trank, getrunken vs. English drink, drank, drunk.

In modern German, classes 3b and 4 are identical. In English, Class 4 verbs have retained an -n in the

past participle (broken, spoken) not found in Class 3b.

Use the table below to learn more about German strong-verb patterns and the ablaut classes. Click on aclass to see German verbs in that class and the vowel pattern for that category. Also see the alphabetical

list below.

Ablaut Patterns in GermanStrong-Verb Conjugation Patterns

Click on an ablaut class for details

Note: Because the ablaut classes are based on the vowel sounds in Proto-Indo-European, Old English,

and Old High German, the spelling of the vowels may differ in modern English and German.

AblautClass German Examples English Examples

1a. ei - i - ibeissen, biss, gebissenleiden, litt, gelitten

drive, drove, drivenslide, slid, slid

1b. ei - ie - iebleiben, blieb, geblieben

schreiben, schrieb, geschrieben

2. ie - o - ofliegen, flog, geflogen

ziehen, zog, gezogen

freeze, froze, frozen

shoot, shot, shot

3a. i - a - u/ofinden, fand, gefunden

beginnen, begann, begonnen

begin, began, begun

sing, sang, sung

3b. e - a - ohelfen, half, geholfen

befehlen, befahl, befohlen

win, won, won

find, found, found

4. e - a - oSee Class 3bSame as 3b in modern German

break, broke, brokenspeak, spoke (spake), spoken

5. e/i - a - eessen, a, gegessen

bitten, bat, gebeten

eat, ate, eaten

give, gave, given

6. a - u - a graben, grub, gegraben shake, shook, shaken

7. [x] - ie - [x]* blasen, blies, geblasen fall, fell, fallen

*Class 7 verbs are uniform in having an ie past tense form, but the other vowels in the infinitive or pastparticiple forms can vary: a/au/ei/o/u. See the chart for details.

Exceptions Ausnahmen Odd verb patterns

German Strong Verbs

Ab laut Class 1b


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There are seven ablaut classes or vowel-shift patterns found in the conjugation of German verbs.

Below is a list of German strong (irregular) verbs in Class 1. This class is further divided into a larger

subgroup of verbs that follow the ei-i-i pattern. See Class 1a for those verbs.

Class 1b: ei - ie - ie (German strong verbs listed alphabetically)

Note: These verbs have other English meanings besides the one shown.

Ablaut Class 1b - GermanGerman Strong-Verb Conjugation Patterns

Principal Parts - ei - ie - ie


bleiben, blieb, geblieben stay, stayed, stayed

gedeihen, gedieh, gediehen flourish, flourished, flourished

leihen, lieh, geliehen loan. loaned, loaned

meiden, mied, gemieden avoid, avoided, avoided

reiben, rieb, gerieben rub, rubbed, rubbed

scheiden, schied, geschieden part, parted, parted

scheinen, schien, geschienen shine, shone, shone

schreiben, schrieb, geschrieben write, wrote, written

schreien, schrie, geschrie(e)n scream, screamed, screamed

schweigen, schwieg, geschwiegen be silent, was silent, has been silent

speien, spie, gespie(e)n spew, spewed, spewed

steigen, stieg, gestiegen climb, climbed, climbed

treiben, trieb, getrieben drive, drove, driven

verzeihen, verzieh, verziehen forgive, forgave, forgiven

weisen, wies, gewiesen reject, rejected, rejected

German Strong Verbs

Ab laut Class 2


There are seven main ablaut classes or vowel-shift patterns found in the conjugation of German verbs.

Below is a list of German strong (irregular) verbs in Class 2.

Class 2: ie - o - o (German strong verbs listed alphabetically)


-

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German Strong-Verb Conjugation PatternsPrincipal Parts - ie - o - o


biegen, bog, gebogen bend, bent, bent

bieten, bot, geboten offer, offered, offered

fliegen, flog, geflogen fly, flew, flownfliehen, floh, geflohen flee, fled, fled

flieen, floss, geflossen flow, flowed, flowed

frieren, fror, gefroren freeze, froze, frozen

genieen, genoss, genossen enjoy, enjoyed, enjoyed

gieen, goss, gegossen pour, poured, poured

kriechen, kroch, gekrochen crawl, crawled, crawled

riechen, roch, gerochen smell, smelled, smelled

schieben, schob, geschoben shove, shoved, shoved

schieen, schoss, geschossen shoot, shot, shot

schlieen, schloss, geschlossen close, closed, closed

sprieen, spross, gesprossen sprout, sprouted, sprouted

stieben, stob, gestoben spray, sprayed, sprayed

verlieren, verlor, verloren lose, lost, lost

ziehen, zog, gezogen pull, pulled, pulled

The Two German Past Tenses

The simple past and the present perfect

Talking about the past in German

Although both English and German use the simple past tense (Imperfekt) and the present perfect tense

(Perfekt) to talk about past events, there are some major differences in the way each language uses these

tenses. If you need to know more about the structure and grammar of these tenses, see the links below.

Here we will focus on when and how to use each past tense in German.

The Simple Past (Imperfekt)We'll start with the so-called simple past because it's simple. Actually, it's called simple because it's

a one-word tense (hatte, ging, sprach, machte) and isn't a compound tense like the present perfect (hatgehabt, ist gegangen, habe gesprochen, haben gemacht). To be precise and technical, theImperfektor

narrative past tense refers to a past event that is not yet fully completed (Latinperfect), but I have

never seen how this applies to its actual use in German in any practical way. However, it is sometimesuseful to think of the narrative past as being used to describe a series of connected events in the past,

i.e., a narrative. This is in contrast to the present perfect described below, which (technically) is used to

describe isolated events in the past.

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Used less in conversation and more in print/writing, the simple past, narrative past, or imperfect tense is

often described as the more formal of the two basic past tenses in German and it is found primarily inbooks and newspapers. Therefore, with a few important exceptions, for the average learner it is more

important to recognize and be able to read the simple past than to use it. (Such exceptions include

helping verbs such as haben, sein, werden, the modal verbs, and few others, whose simple past tense

forms are often used in conversation as well as written German.)

The German simple past tense may have several English equivalents. A phrase such as, er spielteGolf, can be translated into English as: he was playing golf, he used to play golf, he played golf,

or he did play golf, depending on the context.

As a general rule, the farther south you go in German Europe, the less the simple past is used in

conversation. Speakers in Bavaria and Austria are more likely to say, Ich bin in London gewesen,

rather than Ich war in London. (I was in London.) They view the simple past as more aloof and coldthan the present perfect, but you should not be overly concerned about such details. Both forms are

correct and most German-speakers are thrilled when a foreigner can speak their language at all! Just

remember this simple rule for the simple past: it is used mostly for narration in books, newspapers, and

written texts, less in conversation. Which brings us to the next German past tense...

The Present Perfect (Perfekt)

The present perfect is a compound (two-word) tense formed by combining an auxiliary (helping) verb

with the past participle. Its name comes from the fact that the present tense form of the auxiliary verb

is used, and the word perfect, which, as we mentioned above, is Latin for done/completed. (Thepast perfect [pluperfect, Plusquamperfekt] uses the simple past tense of the auxiliary verb.) This

particular German past tense form is also known as the conversational past, reflecting its primary use

in conversational, spoken German.

Because the present perfect or conversational past is used in spoken German, it is important to learn how

this tense is formed and used. However, just as the simple past is not used exclusively in print/writing,

neither is the present perfect used only for spoken German. The present perfect (and past perfect) is alsoused in newspapers and books, but not as often as the simple past. Most grammar books tell you that the

German present perfect is used to indicate that something is finished at the time of speaking or that a

completed past event has results that continue into the present. That can be useful to know, but it is

more important to recognize some of the major differences in the way the present perfect is used in

German and English.

For instance, if you want to express, I used to live in Munich in German, you can say, Ich habe in

Mnchen gewohnt. a completed event (you no longer live in Munich). On the other hand, if youwant to say, I have lived/have been living in Munich for ten years, you can't use the perfect tense (or

any past tense) because you're talking about an event in the present (you are still living in Munich). So

German uses the present tense (with schon seit) in this situation: Ich wohne schon seit zehn Jahren inMnchen, literally I live since ten years in Munich. (A sentence structure that Germans sometimes

mistakenly use when going from German to English!)

English-speakers also need to understand that a German present perfect phrase such as, er hat Geige

gespielt, can be translated into English as: he has played (the) violin, he used to play (the) violin,he played (the) violin, he was playing (the) violin, or even he did play (the) violin, depending on

the context. In fact, for a sentence such as, Beethoven hat nur eine Oper komponiert, it would only be

correct to translate it into the English simple past, Beethoven composed only one opera, rather thanthe English present perfect, Beethoven has composed only one opera. (The latter incorrectly implies

that Beethoven is still alive and composing.)

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To learn more about the two past tenses in German, see the following pages. German Regular

VerbsPast Tense Verb Conjugations

Introduction

Regular German verbs follow an easy-to-learn and predictable pattern in both past tenses (simple

past, present perfect). Once you learn the pattern for one regular German verb, you know how allGerman verbs are conjugated in the past. The irregular verbs don't follow the same rules in the past, but

since most German verbs are regular, this makes your learning task somewhat simpler.

The chart below shows a sample regular German verb in the simple past tense and the present perfect.

All regular German verbs follow the same pattern. We have also included a helpful sample list of

common regular verbs in German.

The Basics (Simple Past)

Any regular German verb uses the basic -te ending to form the simple past, similar to the -ed pastending in English. The past-tense ending is added to the verb stem exactly as in thepresent tense. He

played thus becomes er spielte. To conjugate any regular verb in the simple past, you simply add thepast-tense ending to the stem.

As in the present tense, each person (he, you, they, etc.) requires its own ending on the verb. There arefour (4) unique endings in the German simple past tense, one less than in the present tense (because the

endings forich and the third person are identical in the past). The simple past tense endings are: -te (ich,

er/sie/es), -test (du), -tet (ihr), and -ten (Sie, wir, sie [pl.]). Unlike English, the past tense ending is notalways the same: I played = ich spielte, we played = wir spielten. Now let's look at all the conjugations

ofspielen in the simple past tense. (To learn more about when to use the simple past versus the present

perfect (below), see The Two German Past Tenses.)

SPIELEN / TO PLAYSimple Past Tense -Imperfekt

Deutsch English Sample Sentence

SINGULAR

ich spielte I played Ich spielte Basketball.

du spieltestyou (fam.)

playedSpieltest du Schach? (chess)

er spielte he played Er spielte mit mir. (with me)

sie spielte she played Sie spielte Karten. (cards)

es spielte it played Es spielte keine Rolle. (It didn't matter.)

PLURAL

wir spielten we played Wir spielten Basketball.

ihr spieltet you (guys) played Spieltet ihr Monopoly?

sie spielten they played Sie spielten Golf.

Sie spielten you playedSpielten Sie heute? (Sie, formal "you," is both

singular and plural.)

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The Basics (Present Perfect)

All regular German verbs have a basic past participle form based on the third person singular form. Thethird person form of the verb spielen is (er) spielt. Add the ge- prefix to that and you get the past

participle: gespielt. All regular verbs follow this same pattern: gesagt, gemacht, getanzt, etc.

To form the present perfect tense, you take the past participle (gespielt/played) and use it with anauxiliary or helping verb (usually a form ofhaben, sometimes sein). The present perfect tense gets its

name from the fact that you combine the present tense of the auxiliary verb with the participle to formthe tense. (The past perfect is similar, using the past tense of the auxiliary verb.) In most cases, the pastparticiple is placed at the end of the sentence: Wir haben die ganze Nacht getanzt. (We danced all

night.)

To say I have played (or I played) in the German present perfect, you say: Ich habe gespielt. After

you study the chart below, you will grasp the idea even better.

SPIELEN / TO PLAYPresent Perfect Tense - Perfekt

Deutsch English Sample Sentence

SINGULAR

ich habe gespieltI played

I have playedIch habe Basketball gespielt.

du hast gespielt

you (fam.) played

you have played

Hast du Schach gespielt?

erhat gespielthe played

he has playedEr hat mit mir gespielt.

sie hat gespieltshe played

she has played Sie hat Karten gespielt.

es hat gespieltit played

it has playedEs hat keine Rolle gespielt. (It didn't matter.)

PLURAL

wirhaben gespieltwe played

we have playedWir haben Basketball gespielt.

ihrhabt gespieltyou (guys) playedyou have played

Habt ihr Monoploy gespielt?

sie haben gespieltthey played

they have played Sie haben Golf gespielt.

Sie haben gespieltyou played

you have playedHaben Sie heute gespielt?

Notice in the chart above that the German present perfect tense can be translated into English in two

ways, with or without have. Also be careful to avoid the incorrect use of the German present perfect

for English expressions like, I have lived in Frankfurt for five years (now). In German that would be

expressed in the present tense with seit: Ich wohne seit fnf Jahren in Frankfurt.

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More Regular VerbsNotice the pattern?

English Deutsch Simple Past Past Participle

answer antworten antwortete* geantwortet*

ask fragen fragte gefragt

build bauen baute gebaut

cost kosten kostete* gekostet*

end enden endete* geendet*

hear hren hrte gehrt

say sagen sagte gesagt

*A regular verb whose stem ends in -d or -t adds a connecting e before the -te (past) or -t (past

participle) ending.

German Strong Verbs

Ablaut Class 3



Below is a list of German strong (irregular) verbs in Class 3a. Also see the Class 3b verbs (e - a - o).

Class 3a: i - a - u/o (German strong verbs listed alphabetically)


Ablaut Class 3a - GermanGerman Strong-Verb Conjugation Patterns

Principal Parts - i - a - u


binden, band, gebunden tie, tied, tied

dringen, drang, gedrungen press, pressed, pressed

finden, fand, gefunden find, found, found

gelingen, gelang, gelungen succeed, succeeded, succeeded

klingen, klang, geklungen sound, sounded, sounded

ringen, rang, gerungen ring, rang, rung

schlingen, schlang, geschlungen wrap, wrapped, wrapped

schwinden, schwand, geschwunden dwindle, dwindled, dwindled

schwingen, schwang, geschwungen vibrate, vibrated, vibrated

singen, sang, gesungen sing, sang, sung

sinken, sank, gesunken sink sank, sunk

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springen, sprang, gesprungen spring, sprang, sprung

stinken, stank, gestunken stink, stank, stunk

trinken, trank, getrunken drink, drank, drunk

verschwinden, verschwand, verschwunden disappear, disappeared, disappeared

zwingen, zwang, gezwungen force, forced, forced

Class 3: i - a - o


beginnen, begann, begonnen begin, began, begun

gewinnen, gewann, gewonnen win, won, won

rinnen, rann, geronnen trickle, trickled, trickled

schwimmen, schwamm, geschwommen swim, swam, swum

German Strong Verbs

Ab laut Class 3b



Below is a list of German strong (irregular) verbs in Class 3b. Also see the Class 3a verbs (i - a - u/o).

Class 3b: e - a/o - o (German strong verbs listed alphabetically)


Ablaut Class 3b - GermanGerman Strong-Verb Conjugation Patterns

Principal Parts - e - a - o


befehlen, befahl, befohlen command, commanded, commanded

bergen, barg, geborgen rescue, rescued, rescued

bersten, barst, geborsten burst, bursted, bursted

brechen, brach, gebrochen break, broke, broken

gebren, gebar, geboren give birth, gave birth, given birth

gelten, galt, gegolten apply, applied, applied (to)

helfen, half, geholfen help, helped, helped

nehmen, nahm, genommen take, took, taken

schelten, schalt, gescholten scold, scolded, scolded

schrecken, schrack, geschrocken frighten, frightened, frightened

sprechen, sprach, gesprochen speak, spoke, spoken

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stehlen, stahl, gestohlen steal, stole, stolen

sterben, starb, gestorben die, died, died

treffen, traf, getroffen meet, met, met

verderben, verdarb, verdorben spoil, spoiled, spoiled

werden, wurde (ward), geworden become, became, become

werfen, warf, geworfen throw, threw, thrown

Class 3b: e - o - o


dreschen, drosch, gedroschen thresh, threshed, threshed

fechten, focht, gefochten fence, fenced, fenced

flechten, flocht, geflochten braid, braided, braided

quellen, quoll, gequollen stream, streamed, streamed

schmelzen, schmolz, geschmolzen thaw, thawed, thawed

schwellen, schwoll, geschwollen swell, swelled, swollen

German Strong Verbs

Ab laut Class 5




Class 5: e/i - a - e (German strong verbs listed alphabetically)


Ablaut Class 5 - GermanGerman Strong-Verb Conjugation Patterns

Principal Parts - e - a - e


essen, a, gegessen eat, ate, eaten

geben, gab, gegeben give, gave, given

genesen, genas, genesen recuperate, recuperated, recuperated

geschehen, geschah, geschehen happen, happened, happened

lesen, las, gelesen read, read, read

messen, ma, gemessen measure, measured, measured

sehen, sah, gesehen see, saw, seen

treten, trat, getreten step, stepped, stepped

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vergessen, verga, vergessen forget, forgot, forgot

Class 5: i/ie - a - e


bitten, bat, gebeten request, requested, requested

liegen, lag, gelegen recline, reclined, reclined

sitzen, sa, gesessen sit, sat, sat

German Strong Verbs

Ab laut Class 6




Class 6: a - u - u (German strong verbs listed alphabetically)



Principal Parts - a - u - a

Also see irregular Class 6 verbs below.


graben, grub, gegraben dig, dug, dugladen, lud, geladen load, loaded, loaded

schaffen, schuf, geschaffen create, created, created

tragen, trug, getragen carry, carried, carried

Class 6: a - [a] - aThe following verbs follow the Class 6 pattern

only in part; the past tense form is weak.


backen, backte (buk)*, gebacken bake, baked, baked

fragen, fragte (frug)**, gefragt ask, asked, asked

*Although backen has a weak past in modern German, its past participle is strong. The strong past tenseform bukis rarely used today.

**The verbfragen is weak in modern German. The strong past tense formfrug is rarely used today.

mahlen, [mahlte], gemahlen grind, gound, ground

salzen, [salzte], gesalzen salt, salted, salted

German Strong Verbs

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Ab laut Class 7


There are seven ablaut classes or vowel-shift patterns found in the conjugation of German verbs.Verbs in Class 7 are uniform in having an "[x]-ie-[x]" pattern in which the first and last forms have the

same vowel/diphthong, while the center (past tense) form is always ie. Below is a list of German strong

(irregular) verbs in Class 7.

Class 7: [x] - ie - [x] (German strong verbs listed alphabetically)



Principal Parts (a-ie-a)


Class 7: a - ie - ablasen, blies, geblasen blow, blew, blown

braten, briet, gebraten roast, roasted, roasted

fallen, fiel, gefallen fall, fell, fallen

halten, hielt, gehalten hold, held, held

raten, riet, geraten advise, advised, advised

schlafen, schlief, geschlafen sleep, slept, slept

Class 7: au - ie - au

laufen, lief, gelaufen run, ran, run

Class 7: ei - ie - ei

heien, hiess, geheien be named, was named, has been named

Class 7: o - ie - o

stoen, stie, gestoen bump, bumped, bumped

Class 7: u - ie - u

rufen, rief, gerufen call, called, called

Class 7: a/ - i - a/

Anomaly with i rather than ie

fangen, fing, gefangen catch, caught, caught

hngen, hing, gehangen hang, hanged, hanged

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Ablaut Class 1a

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