German Verbs List: Most Common A1 Verbs with Meanings
The complete Goethe A1 German verbs list, with regular, irregular, and modal verbs all in one place. This page covers the most common German verbs that every beginner needs to know, with English meanings and links to practice conjugation. If you want basic German verbs to start with or a full A1 verb list to study from, this is it.
to meet
“Ich treffe meine Freunde am Samstag.”
I meet my friends on Saturday.
to look, to appear
“Du siehst heute sehr müde aus.”
You look very tired today.
to live
“Ich lebe in Berlin.”
I live in Berlin.
to smell
“Ich rieche die frischen Blumen.”
I smell the fresh flowers.
to excuse, to apologize
“Ich entschuldige mich bei dir.”
I apologize to you.
to be missing, to lack
“Mir fehlt heute mein Schlüssel.”
I am missing my key today.
to come
“Ich komme aus Deutschland.”
I come from Germany.
to end
“Der Film endet um neun Uhr.”
The movie ends at nine o’clock.
to bring along
“Ich bringe eine Flasche Wasser mit.”
I am bringing a bottle of water.
to hear
“Ich höre Musik.”
I listen to music.
to come along
“Kommst du heute mit?”
Are you coming along today?
to say
“Ich sage die Wahrheit.”
I say the truth.
to fly
“Ich fliege morgen nach Berlin.”
I am flying to Berlin tomorrow.
to pay
“Ich bezahle den Kaffee.”
I pay for the coffee.
to stand
“Ich stehe jeden Morgen um sieben Uhr auf.”
I get up every morning at seven o’clock.
to pay
“Ich zahle die Rechnung.”
I pay the bill.
to be off
“Sind die Lampen aus?”
Are the lamps off?
to read
“Ich lese jeden Morgen die Zeitung.”
I read the newspaper every morning.
to explain
“Ich erkläre die Aufgabe.”
I explain the task.
to believe
“Ich glaube dir.”
I believe you.
may, to be allowed to
“Ich darf heute länger schlafen.”
I may sleep longer today.
to rent out
“Ich vermiete ein kleines Zimmer.”
I rent out a small room.
to make, to do
“Er macht keinen Fehler.”
He makes no mistake.
to wait
“Ich warte vor dem Kino.”
I wait in front of the cinema.
to bring
“Ich bringe das Buch zur Schule.”
I bring the book to school.
to sign
“Ich unterschreibe das Formular.”
I sign the form.
to know a person, to know a place
“Ich kenne ihn.”
I know him.
to take off by plane
“Der Zug fliegt nicht ab, sondern der Flieger.”
The train does not take off, but the airplane does.
to cost
“Die Äpfel kosten zwei Euro.”
The apples cost two euros.
to travel
“Ich reise oft nach Berlin.”
I travel to Berlin often.
to get up
“Ich stehe jeden Morgen um sieben Uhr auf.”
I get up every morning at seven o'clock.
to ask
“Ich frage den Lehrer.”
I ask the teacher.
to belong
“Das Buch gehört mir.”
The book belongs to me.
to put on clothes, to get dressed
“Ich ziehe eine Jacke an.”
I put on a jacket.
to cook
“Ich koche heute eine Suppe.”
I am cooking a soup today.
to order
“Ich bestelle eine Pizza.”
I order a pizza.
to take care of
“Ich kümmere mich um meinen Hund.”
I take care of my dog.
to work
“Ich arbeite heute im Büro.”
I am working in the office today.
to go
“Ich gehe jeden Morgen zur Schule.”
I go to school every morning.
to grill
“Ich grille heute Würstchen im Garten.”
I am grilling sausages in the garden today.
to get
“Ich kriege heute einen Brief.”
I get a letter today.
to get, to receive
“Bekommt ihr auch das Geschenk?”
Are you also getting the gift?
to move, to change residence
“Ich ziehe morgen um.”
I am moving tomorrow.
to print
“Ich drucke das Dokument.”
I print the document.
to buy
“Ich kaufe heute Brot.”
I am buying bread today.
to get off
“Ich steige an der Haltestelle aus.”
I get off at the stop.
to dance
“Ich tanze jeden Morgen im Wohnzimmer.”
I dance every morning in the living room.
to need
“Ich brauche Wasser.”
I need water.
to turn off
“Ich mache das Licht aus.”
I turn off the light.
to answer
“Ich antworte sofort.”
I answer immediately.
to use
“Ich benutze jeden Tag mein Handy.”
I use my phone every day.
to give
“Ich gebe dir das Buch.”
I give you the book.
to love
“Ich liebe Kaffee am Morgen.”
I love coffee in the morning.
to speak
“Ich spreche Deutsch.”
I speak German.
to help
“Ich helfe dir gern.”
I like helping you.
to get in, to board
“Ich steige in den Bus ein.”
I get on the bus.
to taste
“Der Apfel schmeckt gut.”
The apple tastes good.
to do
“Ich tue heute nichts.”
I do nothing today.
to watch TV
“Ich sehe jeden Abend fern.”
I watch TV every evening.
to bathe
“Ich bade jeden Morgen.”
I bathe every morning.
to make a phone call
“Ich telefoniere jeden Abend mit meiner Mutter.”
I call my mother every evening.
to be called
“Er heißt Tom.”
His name is Tom.
to fill out
“Ich muss das Formular ausfüllen.”
I have to fill out the form.
to see
“Ich sehe den Hund im Garten.”
I see the dog in the garden.
to understand
“Ich verstehe dich gut.”
I understand you well.
to get to know
“Ich möchte neue Freunde kennenlernen.”
I want to get to know new friends.
to want
“Ich will heute Kaffee trinken.”
I want to drink coffee today.
to lay, to put
“Ich lege das Buch auf den Tisch.”
I put the book on the table.
to know, to know a fact
“Ich weiß die Antwort.”
I know the answer.
to open
“Ich öffne die Tür.”
I open the door.
to invite
“Ich lade meinen Freund zum Essen ein.”
I invite my friend to eat.
to earn
“Ich verdiene heute Geld.”
I earn money today.
to send
“Ich schicke eine E-Mail.”
I send an email.
to visit, to view
“Wir besichtigen das Museum.”
We visit the museum.
to stay overnight
“Wir übernachten heute im Hotel.”
We are staying overnight in the hotel today.
to write
“Ich schreibe einen kurzen Text.”
I write a short text.
to hurt
“Mein Kopf tut weh.”
My head hurts.
to marry
“Ich heirate meine Freundin im Sommer.”
I marry my girlfriend in the summer.
to congratulate
“Ich gratuliere dir zum Geburtstag.”
I congratulate you on your birthday.
to begin
“Ich beginne jetzt die Arbeit.”
I begin the work now.
to mean
“Was bedeutet dieses Wort?”
What does this word mean?
to recommend
“Ich empfehle das Buch.”
I recommend the book.
to press, to push
“Ich drücke den Knopf.”
I press the button.
must, to have to
“Ich muss heute früh aufstehen.”
I have to get up early today.
to search, to look for
“Ich suche meinen Schlüssel.”
I am looking for my key.
to be happy, to look forward
“Ich freue mich auf das Wochenende.”
I am looking forward to the weekend.
to transfer money
“Ich überweise das Geld heute.”
I transfer the money today.
to study
“Ich studiere Deutsch an der Universität.”
I study German at the university.
to learn
“Ich lerne Deutsch jeden Tag.”
I learn German every day.
to place, to put
“Ich stelle den Stuhl an die Wand.”
I put the chair against the wall.
to sell
“Ich verkaufe heute ein altes Buch.”
I am selling an old book today.
to stay
“Ich bleibe heute zu Hause.”
I am staying at home today.
to drink
“Ich trinke Wasser.”
I drink water.
to become
“Ich werde müde.”
I am getting tired.
to request, to ask for
“Ich bitte dich um Hilfe.”
I ask you for help.
to drive, to go
“Ich fahre jeden Tag zur Arbeit.”
I drive to work every day.
to laugh
“Er lacht nicht heute.”
He does not laugh today.
to shop
“Ich kaufe jeden Tag Brot ein.”
I buy bread every day.
to take off clothes, to get undressed
“Ich ziehe meine Jacke aus.”
I take off my jacket.
to last, to take time
“Der Film dauert zwei Stunden.”
The movie lasts two hours.
to be on
“Das Licht ist an.”
The light is on.
to close
“Ich schließe die Tür.”
I close the door.
to sleep
“Ich schlafe heute lange.”
I sleep long today.
to hold, to stop
“Ich halte das kleine Buch in der Hand.”
I hold the small book in my hand.
to ride a bicycle
“Ich fahre jeden Morgen Rad.”
I ride my bike every morning.
to rain
“Heute regnet es stark.”
Today it is raining heavily.
should, to be supposed to
“Ich soll heute früh schlafen gehen.”
I should go to sleep early today.
to wash, to wash oneself
“Ich wasche meine Hände.”
I wash my hands.
to thank
“Ich danke dir.”
I thank you.
to smoke
“Ich rauche nicht.”
I do not smoke.
to be open
“Das Fenster ist auf.”
The window is open.
to eat
“Ich esse einen Apfel.”
I eat an apple.
to play
“Ich spiele jeden Abend Fußball.”
I play soccer every evening.
to take a shower
“Duscht ihr jeden Tag?”
Do you shower every day?
to run, to walk
“Ich laufe jeden Morgen im Park.”
I run every morning in the park.
to visit
“Ich besuche meine Oma.”
I visit my grandma.
to lie, to be located
“Das Buch liegt auf dem Tisch.”
The book is lying on the table.
to repair
“Ich repariere den kaputten Stuhl.”
I repair the broken chair.
to win
“Ich gewinne oft kleine Spiele.”
I often win small games.
to allow
“Ich erlaube dir das Spiel.”
I allow you the game.
to have
“Ich habe einen Hund.”
I have a dog.
would like
“Ich möchte einen Kaffee.”
I would like a coffee.
to participate
“Ich mache bei dem Spiel mit.”
I join the game.
to shine, to seem
“Die Sonne scheint heute.”
The sun is shining today.
to take along
“Ich nehme meine Tasche mit.”
I take my bag with me.
to tell, to narrate
“Ich erzähle eine kurze Geschichte.”
I tell a short story.
to introduce
“Ich stelle mich der neuen Lehrerin vor.”
I introduce myself to the new teacher.
to live, to reside
“Ich wohne in Berlin.”
I live in Berlin.
to find
“Ich finde meinen Schlüssel nicht.”
I cannot find my key.
to sit
“Sitzt du hier?”
Are you sitting here?
to hike
“Ich wandere jeden Sonntag im Park.”
I hike in the park every Sunday.
to rent
“Ich miete eine kleine Wohnung.”
I rent a small apartment.
to spell
“Kannst du deinen Namen buchstabieren?”
Can you spell your name?
to fetch, get
“Ich hole ein Glas Wasser.”
I get a glass of water.
to repeat
“Ich wiederhole den Satz.”
I repeat the sentence.
to swim
“Ich schwimme jeden Morgen im Schwimmbad.”
I swim every morning in the pool.
to celebrate
“Wir feiern heute meinen Geburtstag.”
We are celebrating my birthday today.
can, to be able to
“Ich kann heute Deutsch lernen.”
I can study German today.
Practice with Games
Example Sentences
Ich gehe jeden Tag zur Schule.
I go to school every day.
Sie kauft Brot im Supermarkt.
She buys bread at the supermarket.
Wir lernen zusammen Deutsch.
We learn German together.
Er schreibt einen Brief.
He is writing a letter.
Die Kinder schlafen schon.
The children are already sleeping.