What does gehen mean in German?

Gehen means "to go" or "to walk", specifically on foot. It also appears in expressions about how things are going, as in wie geht es dir? (how are you?).

How do you conjugate gehen?

The present tense is ich gehe, du gehst, er/sie/es geht, wir gehen, ihr geht, sie gehen. The present tense is regular; the irregularity shows up in the past forms.

Is gehen regular or irregular?

Gehen is a strong (irregular) verb. Its simple past is ging and its past participle is gegangen, neither of which follows the regular pattern.

What is the difference between gehen and fahren?

Gehen means going on foot, while fahren means going by vehicle, whether that is a car, train, or bicycle. Ich gehe zur Schule means you walk there; ich fahre zur Schule means you take some form of transport.

Does gehen use haben or sein in the perfect tense?

It uses sein: ich bin gegangen (I went). Verbs describing movement from one place to another take sein as their auxiliary in German.

German Words for Beginners

Verb

gehen

to go

Gehen (to go, to walk) is a strong verb and one of the first you will need. Its present tense looks regular (ich gehe, du gehst, er geht), which hides the irregularity waiting in the past forms: the simple past is ging and the past participle is gegangen. The perfect tense takes sein, not haben, because gehen describes movement from one place to another: ich bin nach Hause gegangen (I went home).

German splits "to go" in a way English does not. Gehen means going on foot. If a vehicle is involved you need fahren (to travel by car, train, or bike) or fliegen (to fly). Saying ich gehe nach Berlin implies you are walking the whole way, so ich fahre nach Berlin is what you actually want.

The verb also carries meanings that have nothing to do with movement. Wie geht es dir? (how are you?) is the standard greeting, shortened in speech to wie geht's?. The answer mir geht es gut means "I am well". Das geht nicht means "that will not work", and es geht on its own means "so-so", a lukewarm but very common reply.

Separable prefixes build on it constantly: ausgehen (to go out), weggehen (to leave), spazieren gehen (to go for a walk), and untergehen (to sink or set, as the sun does).

Present tense conjugation of gehen

Irregular verb

English

to go

ichgehe

dugehst

er/sie/esgeht

wirgehen

ihrgeht

sie/Siegehen

Perfekt

ich bin gegangen

Partizip II

gegangen

Auxiliary

sein

Vocabulary lists with gehen

gehen appears in the following vocabulary collections:

Goethe A1 Irregular Verbs

Goethe A1 strong verbs: Past Tense (Perfekt)

Practice gehen in games

Example Sentences

Ich gehe jeden Morgen zur Schule.
I go to school every morning.
Time comes first before place.
Wir gehen heute in den Park.
We are going to the park today.
Verb is in position 2.
Gehst du oft zu deiner Freundin?
Do you often go to your friend?
Yes/no questions begin with the verb.

Frequently asked questions about gehen

What does gehen mean in German?: Gehen means "to go" or "to walk", specifically on foot. It also appears in expressions about how things are going, as in wie geht es dir? (how are you?).
How do you conjugate gehen?: The present tense is ich gehe, du gehst, er/sie/es geht, wir gehen, ihr geht, sie gehen. The present tense is regular; the irregularity shows up in the past forms.
Is gehen regular or irregular?: Gehen is a strong (irregular) verb. Its simple past is ging and its past participle is gegangen, neither of which follows the regular pattern.
What is the difference between gehen and fahren?: Gehen means going on foot, while fahren means going by vehicle, whether that is a car, train, or bicycle. Ich gehe zur Schule means you walk there; ich fahre zur Schule means you take some form of transport.
Does gehen use haben or sein in the perfect tense?: It uses sein: ich bin gegangen (I went). Verbs describing movement from one place to another take sein as their auxiliary in German.