Irregular Verbs in German (Unregelmäßige Verben) - A2

Irregular verbs (unregelmäßige or starke Verben) change their stem vowel in the Präteritum and often in the Partizip II. Their Partizip II usually ends in -en instead of -t. There is no single rule, so you have to learn them, but many of them follow the same vowel patterns.

Regular vs. Irregular #

The Most Important Irregular Verbs #

The (s) marks verbs that use sein in the Perfekt.

Pattern ei → ie → ie #

Pattern ei → i → i #

Pattern i → a → u #

Pattern a → u → a #

Pattern a → ie → a #

Pattern e → a → e #

Pattern e → a → o #

Pattern ie → o → o #

Very Irregular Verbs #

These verbs don’t follow any pattern. They are also the most common, so learn them first.

Mixed Verbs #

These verbs change the vowel and use the regular endings -te / -t:

Example Sentences #

• Gestern habe ich einen alten Freund getroffen. (Yesterday I met an old friend.) हिंदी: कल मैं एक पुराने दोस्त से मिला।
• Wir sind nach Hamburg gefahren. (We went to Hamburg.) हिंदी: हम हैम्बर्ग गए।
• Ich habe meinen Schlüssel verloren. (I have lost my key.) हिंदी: मेरी चाबी खो गई है।
• Als Kind las ich viele Bücher. (As a child, I read a lot of books.) हिंदी: बचपन में मैं बहुत सारी किताबें पढ़ता था।
• Der Film begann um acht Uhr. (The movie began at eight o’clock.) हिंदी: फ़िल्म आठ बजे शुरू हुई।
• Hast du meine Nachricht gelesen? (Have you read my message?) हिंदी: क्या तुमने मेरा मैसेज पढ़ा?
• Sie hat mir sehr geholfen. (She helped me a lot.) हिंदी: उसने मेरी बहुत मदद की।
• Ich wusste die Antwort nicht. (I didn’t know the answer.) हिंदी: मुझे जवाब नहीं पता था।

Memory Tips #

1. Learn each verb as a set of three: fahren - fuhr - gefahren
2. Group verbs by vowel pattern. If you know trinken - trank - getrunken, you can guess singen - sang - gesungen
3. In speaking, the Perfekt is used most, so the Partizip II is the most important form
4. The Präteritum is important for sein, haben, modal verbs and in written stories
5. Verbs with a vowel change in the Präsens (e → i, a → ä) are almost always irregular

Common Mistakes to Avoid #

1. Regular endings on irregular verbs: gegeht → gegangen, getrinkt → getrunken
2. Wrong helper verb: Ich habe nach Berlin gefahren. → Ich bin nach Berlin gefahren.
3. Confusing kennen and wissen: Ich kenne Anna (a person) / Ich weiß die Antwort (a fact)