Basically, in fact, we're talking about irregular verbs , meaning verbs with a different conjugation than the standard one. But there's nothing to worry about!
Even though it may seem like a difficult subject, thanks to this Sprachcaffe lesson - and all your good will - by the end of this reading you will have understood all the elements necessary to create strong verbs in German... your strong point.
Shall we bet?
First, let's learn to identify them. Strong German verbs are all those verbs that form certain verb tenses from roots other than the infinitive stems from which they are regularly formed. More specifically, all strong verbs modify the stem to the Präteritum, while there are:
As often happens in languages- unfortunately for those who study them! -irregularities do not represent a small portion of vocabulary but, on the contrary, a more consolidated reality.
Strong German verbs are also part of this equation, in fact: they are not as numerous as weak verbs, certainly, but they represent a good 40-50% of the common verbs in the German language.
There are over 200 strong verbs in German , and while they may seem numerous, they make up a relatively small portion of the total verbs used in the language.
The fact is that many of the most commonly used verbs are actually strong verbs . For example, verbs like " gehen " (to go), " sehen " (to see), " sprechen " (to speak), " kommen " (to come), and many others are strong verbs that are widely used in everyday conversation. And, as you can see, they represent words we use every day to communicate, even at a basic level.
For this reason, studying strong German verbs and remembering their characteristics is extremely important from the very first approaches to the language: without them, communicating even simple concepts at A1 level is practically impossible.
How do you use strong German verbs? Very simply, like regular verbs, but keeping in mind the irregularities . Therefore, they can be conjugated in all the main moods and tenses, following the guidelines we learned today.
Let's look at some example sentences using strong verbs to fully understand them even when placed in context:
These examples show how irregular verbs in German are used in sentences to express past actions and how they change form in the past and past participle compared to regular or weak verbs.
The difference between weak and strong verbs in German , therefore, is first of all the way of following the conjugation, which for strong verbs is a bit "separate".
In particular, we find the first differences already in the construction of the present tense:
For example:
As we can see, the only difference in conjugation between these two practically identical verbs is the appearance of umlauts in the second and third person verbs.
Even in the formation of the Prateritum , weak and strong verbs in German present differences: weak verbs never change their vowel, and end with the ending -TE. Strong verbs, on the other hand, have a completely different form from their original.
For example, going back to using two practically identical verbs, we see that:
Finally, it is also important to consider the difference that exists in the Partzip II suffix:
Don't worry: it's completely normal to feel confused at first, especially since there's so much to consider. However, with a little practice, proper study, and the necessary time, we're confident that in no time, strong verbs in German will hold no secrets for you.
If you then decide to go on a study holiday in Frankfurt with Sprachcaffe , it will certainly take you even less time!
Now that you know all the characteristics that distinguish these verbs, all you have to do is learn them all... by heart!
Of course, you don't need to know the entire conjugation by heart, because it's always the same and you only need to learn it once. However, we recommend memorizing the main strong verbs so you can recognize them when you come across them in a text.
Here, then, is a list of the most useful, common, and used strong verbs in German :
Learn the characteristics of these strong German verbs thoroughly, how they behave in various conjugations, and you'll see, learning this language will suddenly become a breeze.
Or almost, at least… enough to be able to face the next lesson in good spirits: reflexive pronouns and verbs in German!
