What is conjugation? Conjugation means the way verb changes its form to express different tenses, moods, or Person.
When we conjugate a verb, we modify its for often by adding an ending. For example, in English you simply add an “s” for the third-person singular: “I live” becomes “she lives.”
English keeps things pretty simple. But in German, we will quickly notice that verbs transform in many more ways. Don’t worry—we’ll guide you through each pattern as we explore the conjugation of the German verb “sein” (to be).
The verb “sein”:
“Sein” means “to be,” and it is used in German to express everything from emotions and physical states to identity. That is why mastering its conjugation is very important.
We need the verb sein to make some of the most basic statements like…
- Expressing’s one’s emotions: Ich bin traurig. (I am sad)
- Telling about colour of something: Die Blumen sind rot. (The flowers are red)
- Asking for the bathroom: Wo ist das Badezimmer?
- Using and adjective to describe anything: Ein Kaffee wäre toll!
Conjugation of the verb “sein”:
“Sein” is a irregular verb as most of the important verbs in German language are irregular verbs. The best way to understand the verb is to study and memorise each form of the verb by itself. So lets see the table for each tense.
Present Tense:
The present tense, known in German as Präsens, is often considered the most crucial tense. German has only one present tense, whereas English distinguishes between simple present and present progressive forms.
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English | German | Example Sentence | Translation |
I am | Ich bin | Ich bin glücklich | I am happy. |
You are | Du bist | Du bist lieb. | You are nice. |
He/She/It is | Er/sie/es ist | Er/sie/es ist hier. | He/she/it is here. |
We are | Wir sind | Wir sind Freunde. | We are friends. |
You are (pl) | Ihr seid | Ihr seid lustig. | You are funny (pl). |
They are | Sie sind | Sie sind Schüler. | They are students. |
Simple past tense:
In German, the simple past tense describes actions that took place in the past and are already finished. This tense is referred to as the “Präteritum” or “Imperfekt.”
English | German | Example Sentence | Translation |
I was | Ich war | Ich war hier | I was here. |
You were | Du warst | Du warst da. | You were there. |
He/She/It was | Er/sie/es war | Er/sie/es war erfolgreich | He/she/it was successful. |
We were | Wir waren | Wir waren Schlau. | We were clever. |
You were (pl) | Ihr wart | Ihr wart laut. | You were loud (pl). |
They were | Sie waren | Sie waren schön. | They were beautiful. |
Present perfect tense:
The Present Perfect is used to describe about past actions or events that are relate to the present tense . In German, this tense is called “Perfekt” and is created by combining the auxiliary verbs haben (to have) or sein (to be) in the present tense with the verb’s past participle.
- Ich habe gearbeitet.(I have worked)
- Ich habe gefargt.(I have asked)
English | German | Example Sentence | Translation |
I have been | Ich bin gewesen | Ich bin einkaufen gewesen | I have been shopping. |
You have been | Du bist gewesen | Du bist krank gewesen. | You have been sick |
He/She/It has been | Er/sie/es ist gewesen | Er ist da gewesen. | He has been there. |
We have been | Wir sind gewesen | Wir waren pleite gewesen. | We have been broke. |
You have been (pl) | Ihr seid gewesen | Ihr seid nett gewesen. | You have been nice (pl). |
They have been | Sie sind gewesen | Sie sind hier gewesen. | They have been here. |
We can form the present perfect tense for the German verb sein, since these are the auxiliary verbs that we need to build the tense itself (e.g., Ich habe gehabt / Ich bin gewesen). Instead, present perfect is used with more verbs that describe actions.
Example Sentence | Translation |
Ich habe Essen gekocht. | I have cooked Food. |
Wir haben das Buch gelesen. | We’ve read the Book. |
Du hast deine Prüfung bestanden. | You’ve passed your exam. |
Ich habe aufgeräumt. | I’ve cleaned up. |
Du hast nicht angerufen. | You haven’t called. |
Sie hat dich gefunden. | She has found you. |
Past perfect tense:
The past perfect tense is called as the “Plusquamperfekt” in German—another long German word in German Language!
To form the sentence we using the past participle of the main verb with the auxiliary verbs haben (to have) or sein (to be), but the auxiliary verbs are conjugated in simple past:
- Ich hatte gearbeitet (I had worked)
- Ich war gegangen (I had walked)
This tense takes you even further back in time than the simple past. You typically use it when telling a story and want to mention something that happened earlier:
Ich war gerade dabei, in den Bus zu steigen, als ich merkte, dass ich mein Ticket zu Hause vergessen hatte.
(I was just about to get on the bus when I realized that I had left my ticket at home.)
English | German | Example Sentence | Translation |
I had been | Ich war gewesen | Ich war treu gewesen | I had been loyal. |
You had been | Du warst gewesen | Du warst drüben gewesen | You had been over there. |
He/She/It had been | Er/sie/es war gewesen | Er/sie/es war müde gewesen | He/she/it had been tired. |
We had been | Wir waren gewesen | Wir waren schlau gewesen. | We had been clever. |
You (pl) had been | Ihr wart gewesen | Ihr wart laut gewesen. | You had been loud (pl). |
They had been | Sie waren gewesen | Sie waren schön gewesen. | They had been beautiful. |
Future tense:
To write a sentence in future tense in German — known as “Futur I” — you use the auxiliary verb werden in the present tense, followed by the infinitive of the main verb.
Examples:
Ich werde lachen – I will laugh
Ich werde gehen – I will go
English | German | Example Sentence | Translation |
I will | Ich werde | Ich werde hier sein | I will be loyal. |
You will | Du wirst | Du wirst drüben sein | You will be great. |
He/She/It will | Er/sie/es wird | Er/sie/es wird laut sein | He/she/it will be sucessful. |
We will | Wir werden | Wir werden schlau sein. | We will be clever. |
You will (pl) | Ihr werdet | Ihr werdet laut sein. | You will be loud (pl). |
They will | Sie werden | Sie werden schön sein. | They will be pink. |
Future perfect tense:
The German future perfect tense, known as “Futur II,” is used to talk about actions that will have been completed at a certain point in the future.
To build this tense, you use the auxiliary verb werden in the present tense, followed by the past participle of the main verb and the appropriate form of haben or sein.
Examples:
Ich werde gelacht haben – I will have laughed
Ich werde gegangen sein – I will have gone
English | German | Example Sentence | Translation |
I will have been | Ich werde gewesen sein | Ich werde hier gewesen sein. | I will have been here. |
You have been | Du wirst gewesen sein | Du wirst toll gewesen sein. | You will have been great. |
He/She/It have been | Er/sie/es wird gewesen sein | Er/sie/es wird erfolgreich gewesen sein. | He/she/it will have been successful. |
We will have been | Wir werden gewesen sein | Wir werden schlau gewesen sein. | We will have been clever. |
You will have been(pl) | Ihr werdet gewesen sein | Ihr werdet laut gewesen sein. | You will have been loud (pl). |
They will have been | Sie werden gewesen sein | Sie werden rosa gewesen sein. | They will have been pink. |
Subjunctive:
In German, the subjunctive is “Konjunktiv.” It refers to a grammatical sentence construction used to express uncertainty, possibility, or hypothetical situations.
For example: Did some one say Vacation? That would be wondeful!
English | German | Example Sentence | Translation |
I will | Ich werde | Ich werde morgen lernen | I will work tomorrow. |
You will | Du wirst | Du wirst pünktlich sein | You will arrive on time. |
He/She/It will | Er/sie/es wird | Er/sie/es wird laut sein | He/she/it will be sucessful. |
We will | Wir werden | Wir werden zusammen essen | We will eat together. |
You will (pl) | Ihr werdet | Ihr werdet das verstanden. | You all will understand that |
They will | Sie werden | Sie werden morgen fahren. | They will travel tomorrow. |
Konjunktiv I:
Konjunktiv I is primarily used in formal contexts, especially for reported speech and indirect commands. For example, when someone says, “My mom said I was really smart,” that’s reported speech — and we’re not sure whether it’s actually true!
English | German | Example Sentence | Translation |
(They said) I was | Ich sei | Man sagt, ich sei schlau. | One says I was smart. |
(They said) you were | Du seist | Man sagt, du seist leichtgläubig. | One says you were gullible. |
(They said) he/she/it was | Er/sie/es sei | Man sagt, es sei kalt draußen. | One says it was cold outside. |
(They said) we were | Wir seien | Man sagt, wir seien freundlich.. | One says we were friendly. |
(They said) you were (pl) | Ihr seiet | Man sagt, ihr seiet höflich. | One says you were polite. |
(They said) they were | Sie seien | Man sagt, sie seien Diebe. | One says they were thieves. |
Konjunktiv II:
Konjunktiv II form is used to talk about mostly hypothetical situations or wishes, or polite expressions. For example, when you think, “If we saved more Money, we would buy a new ,” you’re using this form.
English | German | Example Sentence | Translation |
I would be | Ich wäre | Dann wäre ich glücklich. | D Then I would be happy. |
You would be | Du wärst | Dann wärst du neugierig. | Then you would be curious. |
He / she / it would be | Er/sie/es wäre | Dann wäre sie dabei. | Then she would be with us. |
We would be | Wir wären | Dann wären wir schlauer. | Then we would be smarter. |
They would be | Ihr wäret | Dann wärt ihr Ärzte. | Then you would be doctors. |
You would be (pl) | Sie wären | Dann wären sie Katzen. | Then they would be cats. |
The imperative form in German:
The command form, or “Imperativ,” is used to tell someone what to do — or in this case, what to be. It only differentiate between the singular and plural form of the verbs
| English | German |
Singular | Be happy! | Sei glücklich! |
Be kind! | Sei lieb! | |
Be yourself! | Sei du selbst! | |
Plural | Be good! | Seid gut! |
Be loud! | Seid laut! | |
Be yourselves! | Seid ihr selbst! |
Final Thoughts
So, if you are curious about such type of verbs ,the process of learning German language grammar will be a lot more fun. With the right mindset, resources, one can explore some more marvels and peculiarities at our German language class in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad . Start today, stay consistent, and watch your language skills improve.