# German/Grammar/Verbs
## Verbs

German verbs can be classified as weak or as strong. Weak verbs are very regular in their forms, whereas strong verbs change the stem vowel.
Weak:
Strong:
With its Anglo-Saxon origin, this notion is also present in English.
Some German verbs have weak and strong forms. This may depend on meaning:
Or on transitive vs. intransitive use:

## Strong Verbs
### Liste der starken und unregelmässigen Verben

| | Infinitiv | Präteritum (Preterite) | Perfekt (Past Participle) |
| A | anfangen begin | fing an began | angefangen begun |
| | ankommen arrive | kam an arrived | ist angekommen arrived |
| | anrufen call up | rief an called up | angerufen called up |
| B | backen bake | backte baked | gebacken baked |
| | befehlen command | befahl commanded | befohlen commanded |
| | beginnen begin | begann began | begonnen begun |
| | beißen bite | biss bit | gebissen bitten |
| | bekommen get, receive | bekam got | bekommen gotten |
| | bergen salvage | barg salvaged | geborgen salvaged |
| | bersten burst | barst burst | geborsten burst |
| | betrügen deceive | betrog deceived | betrogen deceived |
| | biegen bend | bog bent | gebogen bent |
| | bieten offer | bot offered | geboten offered |
| | binden tie | band tied | gebunden tied |
| | bitten request | bat requested | gebeten requested |
| | blasen blow | blies blew | geblasen blown |
| | bleiben stay | blieb stayed | ist geblieben stayed |
| | bleichen bleach | blich bleached | geblichen bleached |
| | braten roast | briet roasted | gebraten roasted |
| | brechen break | brach broke | gebrochen broken |
| | brennen* burn | brannte burned | gebrannt burned |
| | bringen* bring | brachte brought | gebracht brought |
| C |
| D | denken** think↓ A "mixed" verb. Combination of strong + weak verbs. | dachte thought | gedacht thought |
| | dreschen thresh | drosch threshed | gedroschen threshed |
| | dringen force | drang forced | gedrungen forced |
| | dürfen may | durfte was allowed | gedurft** been allowed↓ Used with an infinitive. The past participle being the infinitive dürfen: "Wir haben nicht gehen dürfen". |
| E | empfangen receive | empfing received | empfangen received |
| | empfehlen recommend | empfahl recommended | empfohlen recommended |
| | erfinden invent | erfand invented | erfunden invented |
| | erlöschen extinguish | erlosch extinguished | erloschen extinguished |
| | erschallen echo, sound | erscholl sounded | erschollen sounded |
| | erschrecken* scare↓ Strong (passive) and weak (active) forms: "Ich habe ihn erschreckt." (I scared him.) and "Ich erschrak bei der Explosion." (I was startled/scared by the explosion.) | erschrak scared | erschrocken scared |
| | essen eat | aß ate | gegessen eaten |
| F | fahren travel | fuhr traveled | ist gefahren traveled |
| | fallen fall | fiel fell | ist gefallen fallen |
| | fangen catch | fing caught | gefangen caught |
| | fechten fence | focht fenced | gefochten fenced |
| | finden find | fand found | gefunden found |
| | fliegen fly | flog flew | ist geflogen flown |
| | fliehen flee | floh fled | ist geflohen fled |
| | fließen flow | floss flowed | ist geflossen flowed |
| | fressen gorge | fraß gorged | gefressen gorged |
| | frieren freeze | fror froze | gefroren* frozen↓ Frieren takes the helping verb haben or sein, which depends on its meaning. In most cases ("to be cold") is "hat gefroren". However meaning of "to freeze, turn into ice," turns out to be "Der Boden/Das Wasser ist steif gefroren." (The ground/ water has frozen solid.) |
| | frohlocken rejoice | frohlockte rejoiced | frohlockt rejoiced |
| G | gären ferment | gor fermented | gegoren fermented |
| | gebären bear (child) | gebar bore | geboren born |
| | geben give | gab gave | gegeben given |
| | gedeihen flourish | gedieh flourished | ist gediehen flourished |
| | gefallen be pleasing, like | gefiel liked | gefallen liked |
| | gehen go | ging went | ist gegangen gone |
| | gelingen succeed | gelang succeeded | ist gelungen succeeded |
| | gelten be valid | galt was valid | gegolten been valid |
| | genesen recover | genas recovered | genesen recovered |
| | genießen enjoy | genoß enjoyed | genossen enjoyed |
| | geschehen happen | geschah happened | ist geschehen happened |
| | gewinnen win | gewann won | gewonnen won |
| | gießen pour | goß poured | gegossen poured |
| | gleichen resemble | glich resembled | geglichen resembled |
| | gleiten glide, slide | glitt glided | ist geglitten glided |
| | glimmen glow, smoulder | glomm* glowed | ist geglommen* glowed↓ Also glimmte and hat geglimmt (weak). |
| | graben dig | grub dug | gegraben dug |
| | greifen grasp | griff grasped | gegriffen grasped |
| H | haben have | hatte had | gehabt had |
| | halten hold | hielt held | gehalten held |
| | hängen hang | hing hung/hanged*↓ Hängen is weak in transit ("Er hängte das Bild an die Wand.") and strong in intransitive nomances ("Das Bild hing an der Wand."). | hauen hew, hit |
| | haute* hit | gehauen hit | gehangen hung/hanged*↓ Past form hieb (strong verb) is used and the meaning becomes "struck (him) with a weapon." |
| | heben lift | hob lifted | gehoben lifted |
| | heißen be called | hieß named | geheißen named |
| | helfen help | half helped | geholfen helped |
| I | |
| J |
| K | kennen* know | kannte knew | gekannt known Kennen is a "mixed" verb. Combination of strong and weak verbs. |
| | klingen ring | klang rang | geklungen rung |
| | kneifen pinch | kniff pinched | gekniffen pinched |
| | kommen come | kam came | ist gekommen come |
| | können can | konnte could | gekonnt* could Können becomes past participle, once added with an infinitive: "Ich habe nicht gehen können." |
| | kriechen crawl | kroch crawled | ist gekrochen crawled |
| L | laden load | lud loaded | geladen loaded |
| | lassen let, allow | ließ let | gelassen let |
| | laufen run | lief ran | ist gelaufen run |
| | leiden suffer | litt suffered | gelitten suffered |
| | leihen lend | lieh lent | geliehen lent |
| | lesen read | las read | gelesen read |
| | liegen* lie↓ Liegen (lie, recline, strong) and (sich) legen (lay, put, weak) are not the same. | lag lay | gelegen lain |
| | lügen lie | log lied | gelogen lied |
| M | mahlen grind | mahlte ground | gemahlen ground |
| | meiden avoid | mied avoided | gemieden avoided |
| | messen measure | maß measured | gemessen measured |
| | misslingen fail | misslang failed | misslungen failed |
| | mögen like | mochte liked | 'gemocht* liked↓ The past participle is mögen, when used with a infinitive: "Sie hat nicht gehen mögen." |
| | müssen must | musste had to | gemusst* had to↓ The past participle is the infinitive müssen, when used under all modals, with an infinitive: "Wir haben nicht gehen müssen." |
| N | nehmen take | nahm took | genommen taken |
| | nennen name | nannte named | genannt named |
| O |
| P | pfeifen whistle | pfiff whistled | gepfiffen whistled |
| | preisen praise | pries praised | gepriesen praised |
| Q | quellen gush | quoll* gushed↓ Weak form quellte. | ist gequollen* gushed↓ Weak form hat gequellt. |
| R | raten advise | riet advised | geraten advised |
| | reiben rub | reib rubbed | gerieben rubbed |
| | reißen tear | riss tore | gerissen torn |
| | reiten* ride↓ The verb reiten is only used for riding an animal (e.g., horseback riding); to express "ride" in a transportation sense (bus, train, etc.), fahren is used. | ritt rode | ist geritten ridden |
| | rennen* run↓ A "mixed" verb, combining elements of strong and weak verbs. | rannte ran | ist gerannt run |
| | riechen smell | roch smelled | gerochen smelled |
| | ringen wring | rang wrung | gerungen wrung |
| | rinnen flow | rann flowed | ist geronnen flowed |
| | rufen call | rief called | gerufen called |
| S | salzen salt | salzte salted | gesalzen/gesalzt salted |
| | saufen drink | soff drank | gesoffen drunk |
| | saugen suck | sog* sucked | gesogen* sucked↓ The weak forms saugte and hat gesaugt. Mostly the weak form is used. |
| | schaffen create; accomplish, make | schuf* created→↓ The strong forms schuf/hat geschaffen are used when the meaning is "created" ("Sie hat schöne Sachen geschaffen."). | geschaffen* created→↓ To express "accomplished" or "made it," the weak forms schaffte/hat geschafft are used: "Er hat es geschafft (ein Tor zu machen)!" |
| | scheiden depart; separate | schied separated | geschieden* separated↓ In the sense of "leave" or "depart" scheiden takes sein as a helping verb: "Karl ist aus dem Dienst geschieden." |
| | scheinen shine | schien shone | geschienen shone |
| | scheißen shit | schiss shit | geschissen shit |
| | schelten scold | schalt scolded | gescholten scolded |
| | schießen shoot | schoss shot | geschossen shot |
| | schlafen sleep | schlief slept | geschlafen slept |
| | schlagen hit | schlug hit | geschlagen hit |
| | schleichen sneak | schlich sneaked | ist geschlichen sneaked |
| | schleifen polish | schliff* polished | geschliffen* polished↓ Although the strong form is preferred, schleifte and hat geschleift (weak) are also used. |
| | schleißen slit | schliß slit | geschlissen slit |
| | schließen close, lock | schloss closed | geschlossen closed |
| | schlingen gulp (down) | schlang gulped | geschlungen gulped |
| | schmeißen fling, toss | schmiss flung | geschmissen flung |
| | schmelzen melt | schmolz melted | geschmolzen melted |
| | schneiden cut | schnitt cut | geschnitten cut |
| | schrecken scare | schrak/schreckte scared | geschreckt/geschrocken scared |
| | schreiben write | schrieb wrote | geschrieben written |
| | schreien scream | schrie screamed | geschrien screamed |
| | schreiten step | schritt stepped | ist geschritten stepped |
| | schweigen be silent | schwieg was silent | geschwiegen been silent |
| | schwellen* swell, rise↓ There are two forms of schwellen: Strong (above) for the sense of "to swell up/fill with wind," and Weak to "fill (something) up with wind/to swell (something) up." | schwoll swelled | ist geschwollen swollen |
| | schwimmen swim | schwamm swam | ist geschwommen swum |
| | schwinden dwindle | schwand dwindled | ist geschwunden dwindled |
| | schwingen swing | schwang swung | geschwungen swung |
| | schwören swear | schwur/schwor swore | geschworen sworn |
| Se | sehen see | sah saw | gesehen seen |
| | sein be | war was | ist gewesen been |
| | senden* send, transmit↓ In the sense of "transmit" or "broadcast" only the weak forms sendete and hat gesendet are used. The weak forms may also be used in the sense of "send." | sandte sent | gesandt sent |
| | sieden boil | sott/siedete boiled | gesotten boiled |
| | singen sing | sang sang | gesungen sung |
| | sinken sink | sank sank | ist gesunken sunk |
| | sitzen* sit↓ Sitzen (sit, strong) and (sich) setzen (set, weak) are different! | saß sat | gesessen sat |
| | sollen should, ought to | sollte should | gesollt* should↓ With an infinitive, the past participle is sollen: "Ich habe nicht gehen sollen." |
| | spalten split | spaltete split | gespalten/gespaltet split |
| | speien spew | spie spewed | gespien spewed |
| | spinnen spin | spann spun | gesponnen spun |
| | sprechen speak | sprach spoke | gesprochen spoken |
| | sprießen sprout | spross sprouted | gesprossen sprouted |
| | springen jump | sprang jumped | ist gesprungen jumped |
| | stechen stab, sting | stach stung | gestochen stung |
| | stehen stand | stand stood | gestanden* stood↓ In some southern German and Austrian dialects, stehen takes sein as a helping verb: "Er ist im Eingang gestanden." |
| | stehlen steal | stahl stole | gestohlen stolen |
| | steigen climb | stieg climbed | ist gestiegen climbed |
| | sterben die | starb died | ist gestorben died |
| | stieben fly about | stob flew about | ist gestoben flown about |
| | stinken stink | stank stank | gestunken stunk |
| | stoßen push, bump | stieß pushed | gestoßen pushed |
| | streichen strike, paint | strich struck | gestrichen struck |
| | streiten argue | stritt argued | gestritten argued |
| T | tragen carry, wear | trug wore | getragen worn |
| | treffen meet | traf met | getroffen met |
| | treiben move, drive | trieb drove | getrieben* driven↓ In the sense of "drift" or "float" treiben takes sein as a helping verb: "Das Eis ist den Fluss entlang getrieben." |
| | triefen drip | triefte/troff dripped | getrieft dripped |
| | trinken drink | trank drank | getrunken drunk |
| | trügen be deceptive | trog was deceptive | getrogen been deceptive |
| | tun do | tat did | getan done |
| U | überwinden overcome | überwand overcame | überwunden overcome |
| V | verderben spoil | verdarb spoiled | verdorben spoiled |
| | verdrießen annoy | verdross annoyed | verdrossen annoyed |
| | vergessen forget | vergaß forgot | vergessen forgotten |
| | verlieren lose | verlor lost | verloren lost |
| | verschleißen wear (out) | verschliss wore (out) | verschlissen worn (out) |
| | verzeihen forgive | verzieh forgave | verziehen forgiven |
| W | wachsen* grow↓ In the sense of "to wax" (skis, etc.), wachsen is weak: (wachste and hat gewachst). | wuchs grew | ist gewachsen grown |
| | waschsen wash | wusch washed | gewaschsen washed |
| | weben weave | wob/webte wove | gewoben/gewebt woven |
| | weichen* yield↓ In the sense of "to soften" (up), weichen is weak: (weichte and hat geweicht). | wich yielded | ist gewichen yielded |
| | weisen indicate | wies indicated | gewiesen indicated |
| | wenden turn | wandte* turned→↓ | gewandt* turned→↓ Also wendete and gewendet (car, hay, etc.). |
| | werben recruit | warb recruited | geworben recruited |
| | werden become | wurde became | ist geworden* become↓ As a helping verb in the passive voice: worden, as in "Ich bin oft gefragt worden." (I have often been asked.) |
| | werfen throw | warf threw | geworfen thrown |
| | wiegen weigh | wog/wiegte weighed | gewogen/gewiegt weighed |
| | winden twist | wand twisted | gewunden twisted |
| | wissen* know↓ Wissen is a "mixed" verb, combination of strong and weak verbs | wusste knew | gewusst known |
| | wollen want to | wollte wanted to | gewollt* wanted to↓ With an infinitive, the past participle is wollen: "Ich habe nicht gehen wollen." |
| | wringen wring | wrang wrung | gewrungen wrung |
| X |
| Y |
| Z | zeihen accuse | zieh accused | geziehen accused |
| | ziehen* pull↓ Do not confuse with ↑zeihen.↑ | zog pulled | gezogen pulled |
| | zwingen compel | zwang compelled | gezwungen compelled |

## Separable Verbs

Sometimes you will run into verbs such as anrufen, aufräumen, mitkommen. These verbs are examples of Separable Prefix Verbs. When you see these kinds of verbs, it will have a preposition prefix followed by a verb. These verbs separate when they are the main verb of a sentence.
EXAMPLES:
I am calling the butcher. Ich rufe den Metzger an.
I am trying on the boots. Ich probiere die Stiefel an.

## Reflexive Verbs

Reflexive Verbs are verbs involving the reflexive pronoun "sich" and its conjugations that reflect, or refer back, to the performer of the action. There are only accusative and dative reflexive pronouns.
Accusative reflexive pronouns are used when there is no direct object. Dative reflexive pronouns are used when a direct object is present. However, when using a direct object, the possessive is not used.
Examples:
    Accusative: Ich verletze mich. I injure myself.
    Dative: Ich verletze mir die Hand. I injure my hand.
    Accusative: Er hat sich verbrannt. He burned himself.
    Dative: Er hat sich den Daumen verbrannt. He burned his thumb.
Reflexiv Pronommen :
| | Akkusativ (Wenfall) | Dativ (Wemfall) |
| 1st sg. | mich | mir |
| 2nd sg. (informal) | dich | dir |
| 1st pl. | uns | uns |
| 2nd pl. (informal) | euch | euch |
| 2nd sg. or pl. formal; 3rd. | sich | sich |
Notice that all reflexives are the same as the Akkusativ and Dativ Pronoun Declensions — except for 3rd Person and 2nd sg./pl. Person formal (man/sie/Sie), in which case all reflexives are sich.

## Modals
### Dürfen

Dürfen means to be allowed/permitted, may.
| | Present | Past | Conjunctive II |
| ich | darf (I am allowed to) | durfte | dürfte |
| du | darfst (You are allowed to) | durftest | dürftest |
| er/sie/es | darf (He/She/It is allowed to) | durfte | dürfte |
| wir | dürfen (We are allowed to) | durften | dürften |
| ihr | dürft (You (plural) are allowed to) | durftet | dürftet |
| sie/Sie | dürfen (They are allowed to/You (formal) are allowed to) | durften | dürften |
Examples:

### Können

können means 'to be able, capable'. It is cognate with the English word 'can'/'could'.
| | Present | Past | Conjunctive II |
| ich | kann (I can) | konnte | könnte |
| du | kannst (You can) | konntest | könntest |
| er/sie/es | kann (He/She/It can) | konnte | könnte |
| wir | können (We can) | konnten | könnten |
| ihr | könnt (You can) | konntet | könntet |
| sie/Sie | können (They can) | konnten | könnten |
Examples:

### Mögen

mögen expresses a pleasure, or desire. In the present tense, it is used transitively with people or food. e.g. 'Ich mag dich' 'I like you' or 'Ich mag Erdbeeren' 'I like strawberries'. The subjunctive (of the past) expresses preference to perform the action of a subordinate clause 'Ich möchte nach Frankreich reisen' 'I would like to travel to France'. 'mögen' is cognate with the English verb 'may'/'might'.
| | Present | Past | Conjunctive II |
| ich | mag (I would like to) | mochte | möchte (I would like to) |
| du | magst (You like to) | mochtest | möchtest (You would like to) |
| er/sie/es | mag (He/She/It likes to) | mochte | möchte (He/She/It would like to) |
| wir | mögen (We like to) | mochten | möchten (We would like to) |
| ihr | mögt (You like to) | mochtet | möchtet (You would like to) |
| sie/Sie | mögen (They like to) | mochten | möchten (They would like to) |
Example:
(There is also a present subjunctive möge, which is very formal: Der König sagte: "Er möge eintreten." - The king said: "He may enter.")

### Müssen

müssen expresses something forced on you. It is etymologically related to 'must'.
| | Present | Past | Conjunctive II |
| ich | muss gehen (I must/have to go) | musste (I had to) | müsste |
| du | musst | musstest | müsstest |
| er/sie/es | muss | musste | müsste |
| wir | müssen | mussten | müssten |
| ihr | müsst | musstet | müsstet |
| sie/Sie | müssen | mussten | müssten |
Examples:
Note that the negative nicht müssen is not the English must not, but rather need not or don't have/need to. must not translates to nicht dürfen.
There are however some northern German uses like:

### Sollen

sollen expresses an obligation or duty. It is etymologically related to 'shall'.
| | Present | Past |
| ich | soll schwimmen (I am to swim) | sollte (I was to) |
| du | sollst | solltest |
| er/sie/es | soll | sollte |
| wir | sollen | sollten |
| ihr | sollt | solltet |
| sie/Sie | sollen | sollten |

### Wollen

wollen means to want.
| | Present | Past |
| ich | will rennen (I want to run) | wollte |
| du | willst | wolltest |
| er/sie/es | will | wollte |
| wir | wollen | wollten |
| ihr | wollt | wolltet |
| sie/Sie | wollen | wollten |

### Use in Perfect (and Pluperfect) Tense

Although all these modals have a normal perfect:
in connection with other verbs, the infinitive form is used:
Wrong:
It holds also for the verbs sehen and hören:

### Use of modal verbs as full verbs

Modal verbs can be used as full verbs indicating motion. In these cases, the infinitive verb is only implied.

## Present Tense
### Use

The Present Tense is used for..
* The Present Tense (="das Präsens") is used to describe situations that are happening and aren't the past.
* For Ongoing Action, like I'm swimming in the pool now
* Everyday Truths, like The moon and stars will come at night.
* Future meaning, if explicitly stated, like I will run tomorrow morning
* Actions started in the past and still going on in the present I've been cleaning the house all day

### Progressive Forms

There is a present progressive tense in colloquial spoken German. Its use is optional.
Here is one example:
Ich bin am Fahren. (I am at the driving) I'm driving.
The person to say this would be driving during the time they say this and they would continue to drive after stating this for some time.
You nominalize the verb ("fahren" (driving) becomes "das Fahren") and add a "am". You can also do this with forms of the past.
Als er kam war ich gerade am Abwaschen. (When he arrived i was at "the dishwashing") I was washing the dishes when he arrived.
So the verb "sein" (to be) includes the information what tense he was doing what he did in.
Here the progressive meaning is also emphasized with the word "gerade" meaning something like: I was JUST ABOUT to wash the dishes(not the same though because it means he is already doing it and not about to start).

## Perfect Tense

The Perfect Tense or das Perfekt of verbs is used to talk about things in the past which have already happened. It is sometimes referred to as "Present Perfect Tense". This can cause confusion. While the formation is similar, the meaning and usage differs.

### Formation

As in English, the perfect tense consists of two parts. An auxiliary (Hilfsverb) and a past participle (Partizip Perfekt). Compare the examples given below with their English translations.
| Er | hat | gelacht. |
| He | has | laughed. |
| Sie | ist | gekommen |
| She | has | come. |
| Die Kinder | haben | gegessen. |
| The children | have | eaten. |

### Past participle for regular verbs

The general rule is simple:
| verb | prefix | + 3rd-person sing. | participle(er/sie/es) |
| lachen (laugh) | ge | + (er/sie/es) lacht | gelacht |
| kaufen (buy) | ge | + (er/sie/es) kauft | gekauft |
| mähen (mow) | ge | + (er/sie/es) mäht | gemäht |
There are some groups of regular verbs that slightly differ from that pattern.
Some verbs drop the prefix ge-. Like the other regular verbs they end in -t. These are:
1. Verbs with unseparable prefixes (be-, ent-, er-, empf-, ge-, ver-, miss-, zer-) Examples:
| verb | past participle |
| besuchen (visit) | besucht |
| entfernen (remove) | entfernt |
| erreichen (achieve) | erreicht |
| gehören (belong) | gehört |
| verstecken (hide) | versteckt |
| missverstehen (misunderstand) | missverstanden |
2. Verbs ending in -ieren Examples:
| verb | past participle |
| kopieren (copy) | kopiert |
| polieren (polish) | poliert |
3. Another group is formed by verbs with separable prefixes With separable verbs, the prefix ge is placed between the prefix and the rest of the verb. Examples:
| verb | sep. pref.+ ge + 3rd-person sg. | = past participle |
| aufmachen (open) | auf + ge + macht | = aufgemacht |
| abstellen (put down) | ab + ge + stellt | = abgestellt |
Separable and inseparable verbs are distinguished by the stressed syllable:
| verb | past participle |
| über'setzen (to translate) | über'setzt |
| 'übersetzen (to ferry across) | 'übergesetzt |

### Past Participle for Irregular Verbs

Irregular verbs always end in -en. The vowel can be different from the one in present tense. Look at some examples:
| infinitive | 3rd-person sg. | past participle |
| gehen (go) | geht | gegangen |
| essen (eat) | isst | gegessen |
| schreiben (write) | schreibt | geschrieben |
| trinken (drink) | trinkt | getrunken |
| schlafen (sleep) | schläft | geschlafen |
| nehmen (take) | nimmt | genommen |
You have to learn these forms by heart. How you can obtain the necessary information and how you should learn them is described in section tips for learning below.
Note that irregular verbs can be combined with the same prefixes as described above. The same rules regarding the prefix ge- apply. Therefore the forms for schreiben, verschreiben and aufschreiben are geschrieben, verschrieben and aufgeschrieben respectively.

#### Which verbs are irregular

A lot of verbs that are irregular in English are irregular in German, too. Unfortunately, this is not always true. It is most likely when the German and the English verb are related (i.e. look similar).
Examples:
Regular verbs are much more frequent than irregular ones, but a lot of the irregular verbs are used very frequently, for instance haben, sein, gehen, kommen etc.
When in doubt whether a verb is irregular or not, it is best to look it up in a dictionary (See below).

### Haben or sein as auxiliaries

Whether a verb is irregular or not does not influence the choice of auxiliary.
Most verbs take haben as auxiliary.
A) Verbs which take an accusative object (transitive verbs) B) Reflexive verbs always take haben as auxiliary.
Examples A:
Examples B:
The auxiliary sein is taken by verbs that describe
    C) the relocation from one place to another or
    D) the change of a state
       and with
    E) sein (be) and bleiben (stay)
Note: none of the verbs from groups C-E is combined with an accusative object.
Examples C: relocation verbs
In southern German (mostly Bavarian) use, also stehen, sitzen und schwimmen are treated like a (non-)movement:
Examples D: change of state verbs
Examples E: sein and bleiben
Exceptions to the rules Some of the verbs from group A can be used with an object in accusative case. In this case, they take haben as auxiliary.
Compare:
The same applies to fliegen (fly), starten and reiten (ride a horse).

### Usage

Unlike in English the difference in meaning between Perfekt and Präteritum is rather small. The main difference between those two forms lies in usage. Perfekt is mostly used in spoken language, while Präteritum is mostly reserved for written texts. However, the modals, the verbs haben and sein and the expression es gibt are almost exclusively used in Präteritum - even when speaking. One reason might be the frequency of those verbs, the other reason is most likely the very complex perfect forms for modals.
(This is in southern German use; in northern German, you'll hear the preterite also in spoken language.)
On the other hand, the perfect tense is used in writing too. The more oral the text is, the more perfect tense you will find (for example in personal letters etc.). If an action has happened very recently, it tends to be in perfect tense too.
Look at the following conversation and concentrate on the distribution of Präteritum and Perfekt.
(1) Anna: Hallo Peter. Wo warst du denn? Ich habe dich schon lange nicht mehr gesehen. (2) Peter: Hallo Anna. Ich war die letzen zwei Wochen im Urlaub. (3) Anna: So? Wo warst du denn genau?
(4) Peter: Auf der Insel Elba, in einem fantastischen Hotel. Es gab jeden Abend ein Büffet und man konnte essen, so viel man wollte!
(5) Anna (lacht): Ich glaube dir sofort, dass dir das gefallen hat. Du hast aber nicht nur gegessen, oder? Was hast du denn den ganzen Tag gemacht?
(6) Peter (lacht auch): Nein, natürlich nicht. Ich bin viel geschwommen, ich habe mir die Insel angeguckt und am Abend bin ich immer zum Tanzen in eine Disco gegangen.
(7) Anna: Aha... Und? Hast du jemanden kennen gelernt? (8) Peter (grinst): Kein Kommentar.
Vocablary to help you understand the text:
Used forms to talk about past events

### How to find the forms in a dictionary

Unless you have a special dictionary for learners, not all the forms will be spelled out. Regular forms are often omitted. The same goes for the auxiliary haben. If no forms are indicated, you may assume that the verb is regular and has the verb haben as an auxiliary. However, if you find the abbreviation itr or i. (for intransitive) behind the verb, the auxiliary is often sein. Intransitve verbs don't have an accusative object and these are often used with sein, while transitive verbs (tr. or t.) are always conjugated with haben.
Sometimes not even the forms of irregular verbs are given in the lexicon entry. Irregular verbs are often indicated by irr. for irregular or a similar abbreviation. In that case, look for a list of irregular verb forms in the index of your dictionary.
To find the past participle of separable verbs you often have to cut the prefix and look for the base form of the verb. If you look for aufstehen (get up), you probably find your answer in the entry of stehen. Remember: The prefix ge goes in between the prefix of the separable verb and the verb itself: auf + ge + standen.
When working online, you might consider using Canoo. Enter an arbitrary form of the word you are interested in into the mask. Hit enter. On the results page, choose the link Flexion behind the appropriate entry (or inflection in the English version). You will get a table of all possible verb forms.

### Tips for learning

Irregular forms are just that - irregular. Therefore you have to learn them by heart. By learning four forms, you can construct every verb form for a given verb.
The forms you should know are:
All forms - besides the infinitive of course - should be in 3rd-person singular.
A good way to learn those forms is to put them on small cards. On one side you write the infinitive and probably a sentence to illustrate the usage of the verb. On the backside you put the rest of the forms and - if needed - a translation of the verb. When learning, you look at the infinitve and try to remember the forms and the meaning. You can easily verify your hypothesis by flipping the card.
If you encounter a verb you want to learn, look it up in a dictionary. If it is irregular, learn the verb together with its defining forms. Like that, you spare yourself a lot of trouble later on.

## Sentence Structure

The perfect tense consists of two verb forms: an auxiliary and a past participle. Together they form the so called predicate. The predicate consists of all verb parts in one clause.
The sentence structure in perfect behaves as with every two parts predicate (modals plus infinitive, separable verbs etc.)

### Main Clauses

In a main clause (Hauptsatz), the conjugated verb (the auxiliary in this case) is in the second position and the past participle stands at the end of the clause.
* The third example is correct, although not very frequent. You might use it if you want to stress what exactly his father has prepared or if you have to repeat the sentence because your partner has not understood this particular part of it.
Second position does not equal second word, as you can see above. However, there is only one group of words allowed before the conjugated verb (the auxiliary in this case). Such groups of words are called "phrases". While you can put very long phrases in front of the conjugated verb, you must not use two. Therefore the sentence "Gestern sein Vater hat ein fantastisches Essen gekocht" is wrong.

### Subordinated Clauses

Subordinated clauses begin with a subordinating conjunction. Well known conjunctions of this kind are
*In spoken language weil is often used like und or aber, which means that it is followed by a main clause. However, after weil, speakers often pause for a little while. There is no pause after either und or aber. Weil + main clause is not allowed in written language. Therefore you may say: Ich gehe, weil - (little pause) - ich bin müde. But you wouldn't use it in a letter. At least not yet. The correct conjunction for a main clause is denn, which is rarely used in spoken language.
In subordinated clauses the conjugated verb, i.e. the auxiliary, stands at the very end of the sentence. The past participle stands directly in front of it. For example:

## Past tense
### Regular verbs

Regular (or better, weak) verbs take the ending -te. The person endings are added afterwards. Note that the forms for 1st- and 3rd-person singular are the same.
| | lernen |
| ich | lernte |
| du | lerntest |
| er/sie/es | lernte |
| wir | lernten |
| ihr | lerntet |
| sie/Sie | lernten |
If the stem of a verb (infinitive minus -en) ends in -t (arbeit-en), -d (end-en) or consonant plus m or n (öffn-en, rechn-en) you add an -e before the preterite endings.
| | arbeiten |
| ich | arbeitete |
| du | arbeitetest |
| er/sie/es | arbeitete |
| wir | arbeiteten |
| ihr | arbeitetet |
| sie/Sie | arbeiteten |

### Irregular verbs
#### Without -te

The strong verbs belong to this group. The endings are easy to memorize. It is harder to know which vowel to use. The rule mentioned above for t/d, double-consonant + n/m applies also for irregular verbs.
| | fahren | stehen |
| ich | fuhr | stand |
| du | fuhrst | stand(e)st |
| er/sie/es | fuhr | stand |
| wir | fuhren | standen |
| ihr | fuhrt | standet |
| sie/Sie | fuhren | standen |

#### With -te

Few irregular verbs take the -te ending. Examples are: nennen, rennen, kennen, bringen, denken and the irregular modals (können, dürfen and müssen).
| | nennen |
| ich | nannte |
| du | nanntest |
| er/sie/es | nannte |
| wir | nannten |
| ihr | nanntet |
| sie/Sie | nannten |

## Future Tense
### Talking about future with the present tense

German uses the Present Tense to talk about the future whenever it is clear to both speaker and listener that the future is meant. In the dialogue example:
The whole conversation is about the future, so there is no need to indicate it again in the tense of the verb.
Some more examples:

### Futur I

Where the meaning would not otherwise be clear, and in more formal language, e.g. to express an intention, German talks about the future tense by using werden plus the infinitive at the end of the clause. The forms of werden are:
Examples:
The future can also express some inescapable fate:

### Future II

The Future II is formed with added "sein" oder "haben" and expresses that one action will happen before another one.
In the colloquial language, the perfect is often used for that.
In the colloquial language expresses the Future II often a speculation about the past.
In the colloquial language, the Futur II is normally used when speaking about something that should have happened already, but you are not sure or you can't prove it.