German present tense: endings and stem changes
CEFR A1
What you will learn
- Recognise the pattern taught in “German present tense: endings and stem changes” in a short example.
- Choose the appropriate form from “German present tense: endings and stem changes” using explicit evidence.
- Apply and justify the rule from “German present tense: endings and stem changes” in a new case.
The idea
The regular present combines a stem with six endings; some verbs adjust pronunciation and others change the vowel only with du and er/sie/es.
Remove -en or -n from the infinitive to find the stem, then add: ich -e, du -st, er -t, sie -t, es -t, wir -en, ihr -t, sie -en, Sie -en. With machen: ich mache; du machst; er macht; sie macht; es macht; wir machen; ihr macht; sie machen; Sie machen. Coinciding forms are displayed separately so that no person disappears.
If the stem ends in -d or -t, an e commonly appears before -st and -t to make pronunciation possible: arbeiten → du arbeitest, er arbeitet, ihr arbeitet. After s, ß, x or z, the du form avoids an impossible cluster and normally uses just -t: heißen → du heißt; tanzen → du tanzt.
Some strong verbs change their stem vowel in du and er/sie/es, but not in ich, wir, ihr or sie/Sie. Frequent patterns include e→i —helfen: du hilfst, er hilft—; e→ie —sehen: du siehst, er sieht—; a→ä —fahren: du fährst, er fährt—. Membership in this group must be learned with the verb; not every verb with those vowels changes.
The Präsens expresses what is happening now, habits, and also near-future events with a time marker: Morgen besuchen wir Linz. German does not have only two irregular verbs: sein and haben are highly frequent, but modals, strong verbs and other patterns are added gradually.
machen praesens
| elemento | forma |
|---|---|
| 1 | ich mache |
| 2 | du machst |
| 3 | er macht |
| 4 | sie macht |
| 5 | es macht |
| 6 | wir machen |
| 7 | ihr macht |
| 8 | sie machen |
| 9 | Sie machen |
patrones especiales
| elemento | forma |
|---|---|
| raíz -d/-t | e de apoyo ante -st/-t |
| raíz -s/-ß/-x/-z | du normalmente -t |
| verbos fuertes | cambio vocálico solo en du y er/sie/es |
How it sounds
- Ich spiele Schach. Ihr spielt Karten.The stem spiel- takes -e with ich and -t with ihr.
- Du wartest draußen. Er wartet drinnen.The e separates the -t stem from the endings.
- Du heißt Noor. Sie heißen Kaya.du heißt does not add another s sound; the plural keeps -en.
Your turn
Two or three, to check that the bit above landed.
Du ___ jeden Samstag im Garten. (arbeiten)
arbeitest — The stem arbeit- ends in t, so e appears before -st: arbeitest.
Lena ___ ihrem Bruder. (helfen)
hilft — helfen follows the e→i pattern and Lena is third-person singular: hilft.
Welche Person passt zur Präsensform „fahren“?
wir — The a→ä change affects only du and er/sie/es; wir keeps fahren.
When it doesn't hold
What breaks the rule, said out loud. Hiding it is what makes you feel cheated in the exam.
- One group of verbs changes the stem vowel in du and er, but the ending stays exactly the same.ich fahre – du fährst – er fährt
- wissen behaves like a modal and leaves the first and third person identical.ich weiß – du weißt – er weiß
- sein derives from nothing: it is the exception you learn whole.ich bin – du bist – er ist
What your own language pushes you to say
Wrong Du arbeitst zu viel.
Right Du arbeitest zu viel.
English only ever adds -s and never has to insert a vowel, so the supporting e of arbeitest, findest and antwortest simply gets forgotten.
Curriculum alignment and sources
- CEFR A1 · simple one-clause structures for routines and concrete needs; the verb inventory is editorial · Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Companion Volume
- Verb forms cross-checked against German-specific descriptions · Reference Level Descriptions developed so far