The German Perfect Tense with Haben Explained
The Perfekt is the most important German past tense, especially when you speak. This lesson shows you when to use it, how to form the past participle of regular, irregular and separable verbs, and how to build the complete sentence.
What Is the Perfekt?
The Perfekt (das Perfekt) is the past tense you use most in spoken German. If you want to talk about something that happened yesterday, last week or last year, you will almost always use the Perfekt. The simple past (Präteritum) is used more in writing, see How to use & build the German Simple Past Tense.
How Do You Build the Perfekt?
The Perfekt has two parts: a conjugated auxiliary verb (here haben) and the past participle (Partizip II). The auxiliary verb takes the second position, and the past participle goes to the end of the sentence.
- Ich habe gestern Pizza gegessen.
- Wir haben Deutsch gelernt.
- Hast du das Buch gelesen?
Most verbs form the Perfekt with haben. A smaller group uses sein, see Sein or Haben?.
The Past Participle of Regular Verbs
Regular verbs form the participle like this: ge- + stem + -t.
| Infinitive | Partizip II | Example |
|---|---|---|
| machen | gemacht | Ich habe das gemacht. |
| lernen | gelernt | Wir haben Deutsch gelernt. |
| spielen | gespielt | Er hat FuĂźball gespielt. |
The Past Participle of Irregular Verbs
Irregular verbs (often called strong verbs) use ge- + stem + -en, and the stem often changes. You need to learn these forms:
| Infinitive | Partizip II | Example |
|---|---|---|
| trinken | getrunken | Ich habe Wasser getrunken. |
| sehen | gesehen | Sie hat den Film gesehen. |
| schreiben | geschrieben | Er hat eine E-Mail geschrieben. |
| nehmen | genommen | Wir haben ein Taxi genommen. |
Find many more in ALL A1 German Irregular Verbs.
The Past Participle of Separable Verbs
With separable verbs, the ge- goes between the prefix and the verb stem, and everything is written as one word.
| Infinitive | Partizip II | Example |
|---|---|---|
| einkaufen | eingekauft | Ich habe im Supermarkt eingekauft. |
| anrufen | angerufen | Er hat mich angerufen. |
| aufräumen | aufgeräumt | Sie hat das Zimmer aufgeräumt. |
Read more about these verbs in German Separable Verbs: The Basics.
Verbs Without ge-
Some verbs never take ge-, for example verbs with the prefixes be-, ver-, ent- and verbs ending in -ieren: besucht, verstanden, telefoniert. See The German Past Participle: Exceptions for the whole list.
The Complete Sentence Structure
In a main clause, haben is in position 2 and the participle is at the end. In a question with no question word, haben comes first. In a subordinate clause, the participle and haben both go to the end, with haben last.
- Main clause: Gestern habe ich Pizza gegessen.
- Yes / no question: Hast du Pizza gegessen?
- Subordinate clause: Ich weiĂź, dass du Pizza gegessen hast.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I form the Perfekt with haben?
Use the present tense of haben in position 2 and the past participle at the end of the sentence: Ich habe Pizza gegessen.
How do I form the past participle of a regular verb?
Ge- + stem + -t: machen → gemacht.
How do I form the past participle of a separable verb?
Put ge- between the prefix and the stem: einkaufen → eingekauft.
Which verbs do not take ge- in the Partizip II?
For example verbs with the prefixes be-, ver- and ent-, and verbs that end in -ieren.
When do I use the Perfekt and when the Präteritum?
In spoken German, use the Perfekt for most past events. The Präteritum is more common in written texts and with a few verbs such as sein and haben.
Want to practise the Perfekt in real sentences? Our A1 German course has clear lessons for it.
