Wo warst du? Where were you? Mastering German Strong Verbs in the Präteritum or Narrative Past

In this post we’ll learn about German Strong Verbs in the Präteritum, also known as the narrative past. We’ll cover everything you need to know to form and use this tense. First, we’ll start by defining the differences between the two German past tenses, the Perfekt and the Präteritum. Then we’ll explain the three different kinds of verbs in German – weak, strong, and mixed. Next, we’ll explain how to form and use the German Präteritum of strong verbs. Then we’ll look at the verbs that are typically used in the Präteritum instead of the Perfekt. After that we’ll look at the most common and useful German strong verbs, divided into groups with similar forms so you can memorize them more easily. Finally, we’ll wrap up with a practice exercise. We’ll include plenty of examples throughout.

German Perfekt vs. Präteritum: What’s the Difference?

First, let’s start by defining the two different past tenses that you use in German. Those are the Perfekt, also known as the Conversational Past, and the Präteritum, also known as the Simple Past or Narrative Past. These tenses differ both in form and in use. The Perfekt is a compound tense, meaning it uses an auxiliary verb and a past participle. This is exactly like the English present perfect (has gone, have seen, etc.). The Präteritum is a simple tense, using just one word, like the English simple past (went, saw, etc.)

The difference in usage is not like in English, though. The Perfekt is typically a spoken tense, used in everyday speech or informal writing. The Präteritum is usually a more formal tense, used in written stories, news, and formal writing. But a few common verbs – haben (to have), sein (to be), werden (to become), modals like können (can) or wollen (want), and just a few other verbs – are typically used in the Präteritum even in spoken or informal language.

Here’s a summary of the differences between the German Perfekt and Präteritum.

Weak, Strong, and Mixed German Verbs

Now let’s turn to an important distinction when forming the German past tense.  German verbs are divided into three categories: weak, strong, and mixed. It’s important to know which category a verb belongs to, because that will determine how to form its simple past (for the Präteritum) and its past participle (for the Perfekt.)

Weak Verbs

Weak verbs are regular verbs that take a simple ending in the past and past participle. An example is arbeiten (to work), gearbeitet (worked), arbeitete (worked). This is exactly like the regular/weak English verb work, which takes a regular –ed ending in both the past participle (has worked) and simple past (worked).

• Learn more the Perfekt/Conversational Past of weak verbs in this post.
• Learn about the Präteritum/Narrative Past of weak verbs in this post.

Strong Verbs

Strong verbs, which we’ll focus on here, are irregular verbs that have a vowel shift and do not take the regular –t– in the past tense. An example is essen (to eat), gegessen (eaten), aß (ate). This is exactly like the English verb eat, which has a vowel change in the past, and which doesn’t take the regular –ed ending. German strong verbs have unpredictable vowel shifts, both in the past participle (gegessen eaten, gegangen gone, gesprochen spoken) and the Präteritum (aß ate, ging went, sprach spoke). This system looks very much like English strong verbs (take, took, taken; sing, sang sung; drive, drove, driven, and so on.)

• Learn about the Perfekt/Conversational Past of strong verbs in this post.

Mixed Verbs

The last category of German verbs is mixed verbs. These verbs take the regular ending –t, like weak verbs, but they also have a vowel shift, like strong verbs. An example is denken (to think), gedacht (thought), dachte (thought). English verbs like think are similar to German mixed verbs. They have a vowel shift (think > thought) but also take the past ending –t. There aren’t many mixed verbs in either language, but since a few common verbs are mixed, you should learn them.

How to Form the German Präteritum of Strong Verbs

To form the German Präteritum of strong verbs, start with the basic form (ich or er/sie/es) and add the narrative past endings. Notice that there are no endings on the ich or er/sie/es forms, so these serve as the basic forms.

You can add an e before the du and ihr endings to assist pronunciation, for example if the stem ends in an s sound, a t, a d, or any sequence of letters that would be unpronounceable otherwise. Notice that both –st and –est are acceptable in many cases.

Examples

Remember that the Perfekt is typically used when talking about the past in conversation or in informal, everyday contexts. The Präteritum sounds stilted or overly formal in these contexts. But you will see the Präteritum in writing, especially in news reports, literature and storytelling, business reports, and academic writing.

• Die Polizei nahm den Verdächtigen gestern Abend fest.
  The police arrested the suspect last night.
• Das Unternehmen verlor im letzten Quartal zehn Prozent seines Umsatzes.
  The company lost ten percent of its revenue last quarter.
• Die Regierung versprach schnelle Hilfe, hielt ihr Versprechen jedoch nicht ein.
  The government promised quick aid but did not keep its promise.
• Die Firma gewann mehrere neue Kunden im asiatischen Markt.
  The company gained several new clients in the Asian market.
• Die Aktie stieg nach der Ankündigung um fünf Prozent.
  The stock rose by five percent after the announcement.
• Das Team übernahm die Leitung des Projekts im Januar.
  The team took over the leadership of the project in January.
• Das Management entschied sich für eine langfristige Strategie.
  The management decided on a long-term strategy.
• Der Forscher wies nach, dass die Methode zuverlässig war.
  The researcher proved that the method was reliable.
• Das Experiment ergab unerwartete Resultate.
  The experiment yielded unexpected results.
• Die Autoren beschrieben den Prozess in mehreren Schritten.
  The authors described the process in several steps.

Verbs Typically Used in the Präteritum

Now let’s look at some verbs that are typically used in the Präteritum, even in conversation. These verbs sound perfectly natural in the Präteritum. They include sein (to be), haben (to have), werden (to become), modals like können (can) and wollen (want), and verbs of location.

Haben, Sein, Werden

First, we’ll start with sein, haben, and werden.

• Das Wetter war gestern richtig schön, oder?
  The weather was really nice yesterday, right?
• Ich hatte keine Zeit, ins Fitnessstudio zu gehen.
  I didn’t have time to go to the gym.

Modals

Next, let’s see the modals. You can learn more about modals in this post.

• Wir konnten den Film nicht schauen.
  We couldn’t watch the movie.
• Ich wollte eigentlich früher kommen, aber der Bus hatte Verspätung.
  I actually wanted to come earlier, but the bus was late.
• Ich musste gestern Überstunden machen.
  I had to work overtime yesterday.

Verbs of Position

Next we’ll look at verbs of position that are typically used in the Präteritum instead of the Perfekt.

• Er stand die ganze Zeit an der Bar.
  He stood at the bar the whole time.
• Das Handy lag den ganzen Tag auf dem Tisch.
  The phone was lying on the table all day.
• Wir saßen in der ersten Reihe.
  We were sitting in the front row.
• Mein Mantel hing im Schrank.
  My coat hung in the closet.

German Strong Verbs by Category

Now let’s see several common German strong verbs. We’ll include both past tenses – the narrative past or Präteritum, and the past participle, which you’ll use to form the Perfekt or conversational past. If a verb takes sein in the Perfekt, we’ll indicate that with (ist) before the past participle.

German strong verbs can be divided into several categories based on the vowel patterns in both forms. Since you need to memorize both, it’s best to memorize them together so you can see these patterns. There’s not much of a trick in memorizing these irregular forms. We recommend focusing on a category based on the vowel pattern, and then simply repeating the forms aloud as you read them (haben – hat – hatte – gehabt). If you write them out as you say them, you’re adding another “input,” which will help you remember them. Repetition is key; you’ll begin to form a connection between the infinitive and present forms and the irregular Präteritum and past participles. So don’t be shy about repeating the forms aloud again and again and again.

A > A Verbs

Let’s start with a small group that has a in both the Präteritum and the past participle.

A > E Verbs

Now let’s see a larger group that has a in the Präteritum and e in the past participle.

A > O Verbs

Next is a larger group that has a in the Präteritum and o in the past participle.

A > U Verbs

Now let’s see a group that has a in the Präteritum and u in the past participle.

I > I Verbs

Next is a group that has i in both the Präteritum and the past participle.

I > A Verbs

Now let’s see a group that has i in the Präteritum and a in the past participle.

IE > A Verbs

Next we’ll take a look at a group that has ie in the Präteritum and a in the past participle.

IE > IE Verbs

Now we’ll see several verbs that have ie in the Präteritum as well as in the past participle.

IE > AU/O/U Verbs

A few verbs have ie in the Präteritum but different vowels (au, o, or u) in the past participle.

U > A Verbs

Next we’ll see a group of verbs that have u in the Präteritum and a in the past participle.

O > O Verbs

Finally, let’s wrap up with a group of verbs that have o in both the Präteritum and the past participle.

Practice

Change the infinitives to the correct form of the Präteritum in each of the following paragraphs. Then translate. Answers are given below.

A.

Die Aktienkurse [FALLEN] gestern deutlich, nachdem die Zentralbank neue Zahlen veröffentlichte. Investoren [VERLIEREN] Vertrauen und [ZIEHEN] sich aus dem Markt zurück. Analysten [BIETEN] erste Erklärungen an und warnten vor weiteren Schwankungen. Einige Händler [HALTEN] dennoch an ihren Positionen fest und hofften auf eine baldige Erholung.

B.

Die Regierung [SPRECHEN] gestern mit Industrievertretern über neue Energieziele. Die Teilnehmer [KOMMEN] am Vormittag zusammen und [BEGINNEN] die Gespräche hinter verschlossenen Türen. Mehrere Minister [GEBEN] am Nachmittag erste Einschätzungen ab. Die Kanzlerin [HALTEN] sich zunächst zurück, betonte aber später die Bedeutung eines gemeinsamen Vorgehens in der Energiepolitik.

C.

Now transform each of the following present tense sentences to the Präteritum. Then translate the answers.

1. Die Kinder sind zu Hause.
2. Ich habe viel Zeit.
3. Wir werden bald müde.
4. Sie kann gut schwimmen.
5. Er will Arzt werden.
6. Du musst das Formular ausfüllen.
7. Die Zeitung liegt auf dem Tisch.
8. Ich sitze am Fenster.
9. Ihr dürft nicht gehen.
10. Das Bild hängt an der Wand.

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Answer Key

A

Die Aktienkurse fielen gestern deutlich, nachdem die Zentralbank neue Zahlen veröffentlichte. Investoren verloren Vertrauen und zogen sich aus dem Markt zurück. Analysten boten erste Erklärungen an und warnten vor weiteren Schwankungen. Einige Händler hielten dennoch an ihren Positionen fest und hofften auf eine baldige Erholung.

Stock prices dropped significantly yesterday after the central bank released new data. Investors lost confidence and pulled out of the market. Analysts offered initial explanations and warned of further volatility. Some traders, however, held on to their positions and hoped for a quick recovery.

B

Die Regierung sprach gestern mit Industrievertretern über neue Energieziele. Die Teilnehmer kamen am Vormittag zusammen und begannen die Gespräche hinter verschlossenen Türen. Mehrere Minister gaben am Nachmittag erste Einschätzungen ab. Die Kanzlerin hielt sich zunächst zurück, betonte aber später die Bedeutung eines gemeinsamen Vorgehens in der Energiepolitik.

The government spoke yesterday with industry representatives about new energy goals. Participants came together in the morning and began talks behind closed doors. Several ministers gave initial assessments in the afternoon. The chancellor initially held back but later emphasized the importance of a joint approach to energy policy.

C.

1. Die Kinder waren zu Hause.
   The kids were at home.
2. Ich hatte viel Zeit.
   I had a lot of time.
3. Wir wurden bald müde.
   We soon became tired.
4. Sie konnte gut schwimmen.
   She could swim well.
5. Er wollte Arzt werden.
   He wanted to become a doctor.
6. Du musstest das Formular ausfüllen.
   You had to fill out the form.
7. Die Zeitung lag auf dem Tisch.
   The newspaper lay on the table.
8. Ich saß am Fenster.
   I sat at the window.
9. Ihr durftet nicht gehen.
   You (plural) were not allowed to go.
10. Das Bild hing an der Wand.
    The picture hung on the wall.

Image by wal_172619 from Pixabay