Meaning and Usage
The German verb finden means to find in English. It is used to express the action of locating or discovering something, either physically or figuratively, such as finding an object, a place, or an opinion.
Verb Type
Finden is an irregular strong verb in German. It follows irregular stem changes in the present tense, particularly in the second and third person singular forms.
Present Tense Conjugation
The verb finden conjugates irregularly in the present tense, with a stem vowel change from "i" to "ie" occurring in the du and er/sie/es forms.
| German Pronoun | German Conjugation | English Conjugation | German Example | English Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ich | finde | I find | Ich finde den Schlüssel. | I find the key. |
| du | findest | you find | Du findest das Buch gut. | You find the book good. |
| er/sie/es | findet | he/she/it finds | Er findet den Weg. | He finds the way. |
| wir | finden | we find | Wir finden die Lösung. | We find the solution. |
| ihr | findet | you (plural) find | Ihr findet die Adresse. | You (pl.) find the address. |
| sie/Sie | finden | they/you (formal) find | Sie finden den Park schön. | They find the park nice. |
Past Tense Forms
The simple past (Präteritum) of finden is also irregular:
| German Pronoun | German Conjugation | English Conjugation | German Example | English Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ich | fand | I found | Ich fand den Schirm nicht. | I did not find the umbrella. |
| du | fandst | you found | Du fandst das Bild schön. | You found the picture nice. |
| er/sie/es | fand | he/she/it found | Sie fand den Film spannend. | She found the movie exciting. |
| wir | fanden | we found | Wir fanden den Weg zurück. | We found the way back. |
| ihr | fandet | you (plural) found | Ihr fandet die Antwort. | You (pl.) found the answer. |
| sie/Sie | fanden | they/you (formal) found | Sie fanden den Park groß. | They found the park big. |
The perfect tense is formed with the auxiliary haben plus the past participle gefunden.
Past Participle and Perfect Tense
- Past participle: gefunden
- Auxiliary verb: haben
Example:
Ich habe meinen Schlüssel gefunden.
I have found my key.
Summary
The verb finden is essential for expressing the concept of discovering or locating in German. It is irregular but commonly used, requiring attention to vowel changes in the present tense and irregular forms in the past.
