Irregular verb tables 1 Revision Notes for AQA GCSE German

Irregular verb tables 1

Understanding German irregular verbs

German irregular verbs, also known as strong verbs (starke Verben), don't follow the standard conjugation patterns that regular verbs do. These verbs change their stem vowels when conjugated, making them essential to memorise for effective German communication.

The table shows the most important forms you need to know: the infinitive (basic form), the third person present singular (er/sie/es form), the third person imperfect singular (simple past), and the past participle (used for perfect tenses).

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Table Structure Guide Each row shows the complete conjugation pattern for one irregular verb. Focus on memorising all four forms together as a set, as this will help you recognise and use these verbs correctly in different tenses.

Key irregular verbs and their forms

Here are the essential irregular verbs you need to master:

English	Infinitive	3rd person present	3rd person imperfect	Past participle
to begin	beginnen	beginnt	begann	begonnen
to stay	bleiben	bleibt	blieb	geblieben*
to bring	bringen	bringt	brachte	gebracht
to be allowed	dürfen	darf	durfte	gedurft
to eat	essen	isst	aß	gegessen
to travel	fahren	fährt	fuhr	gefahren*
to fall	fallen	fällt	fiel	gefallen*
to find	finden	findet	fand	gefunden
to give	geben	gibt	gab	gegeben
to go	gehen	geht	ging	gegangen*
to win	gewinnen	gewinnt	gewann	gewonnen
to have	haben	hat	hatte	gehabt
to help	helfen	hilft	half	geholfen
to know	kennen	kennt	kannte	gekannt
to come	kommen	kommt	kam	gekommen*
to be able	können	kann	konnte	gekonnt
to allow/let	lassen	lässt	ließ	gelassen
to run	laufen	läuft	lief	gelaufen*
to read	lesen	liest	las	gelesen
to like	mögen	mag	mochte	gemocht
to have to	müssen	muss	musste	gemusst

Perfect tense formation with haben or sein

Most German verbs form the perfect tense with haben (to have), but certain verbs require sein (to be) instead. The asterisk (*) in the table indicates verbs that typically take sein in the perfect tense.

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Critical Rule: haben vs sein Verbs that take sein generally fall into two categories:

Movement verbs: gehen (to go), fahren (to travel), kommen (to come), laufen (to run)
Change of state verbs: bleiben (to stay), fallen (to fall)

This distinction is crucial for forming correct perfect tense sentences!

Some verbs, like fahren, can use either haben or sein depending on whether they have a direct object:

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Worked Example: haben vs sein with 'fahren'

With direct object (takes haben): "Er hat sein neues Auto gefahren" (He drove his new car)

Without direct object (takes sein): "Sie ist nach Köln gefahren" (She travelled to Cologne)

The key difference is whether there's a direct object (sein neues Auto) or not.

Grammar and pronunciation tips

When learning these irregular verbs, focus on these patterns:

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Vowel Change Patterns Many irregular verbs change their stem vowel in the present tense (second and third person singular). This is a key identifying feature of strong verbs.

Vowel changes: Many irregular verbs change their stem vowel in the present tense (second and third person singular). For example:

fahren → du fährst, er/sie/es fährt
lesen → du liest, er/sie/es liest
helfen → du hilfst, er/sie/es hilft

Pronunciation notes:

The 'ä' in fährt sounds like the 'a' in "cat"
The 'ie' in liest is pronounced like "ee" in "see"
The 'ß' in aß is a sharp 's' sound

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Memory Strategy Group verbs by their vowel change patterns. Many verbs that have 'a' in the infinitive change to 'ä' in the present tense (fahren→fährt, laufen→läuft). This pattern recognition will help you remember multiple verbs at once.

Translation practice

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Translation Exercise

German to English:

Sie ist gestern nach Berlin gefahren.
Wir haben das Buch schon gelesen.

English to German: 3. He gave me the book yesterday. 4. They came home late.

Answers:

She travelled to Berlin yesterday.
We have already read the book.
Er hat mir gestern das Buch gegeben.
Sie sind spät nach Hause gekommen.

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Key Points to Remember:

Irregular verbs change their stem vowels and must be memorised individually
Verbs marked with * typically form perfect tense with sein rather than haben
Movement and change-of-state verbs usually take sein in perfect tense
Some verbs like fahren can take either haben or sein depending on context
Focus on learning the four key forms: infinitive, present (3rd person), imperfect, and past participle

Irregular verb tables 1 (AQA GCSE German): Revision Notes