Meaning and Usage
The verb geben means to give in English. It is used to indicate the action of handing over something to someone or providing something. Geben is an irregular verb in German and is commonly used in both everyday conversation and formal contexts.
Present Tense Conjugation
The present tense of geben shows irregular changes in the stem for the second and third person singular forms. It is important to learn these forms due to their frequent use.
| German Pronoun | German Conjugation | English Conjugation | German Example | English Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ich | gebe | I give | Ich gebe dir das Buch. | I give you the book. |
| du | gibst | you give (singular) | Du gibst mir das Geld. | You give me the money. |
| er/sie/es | gibt | he/she/it gives | Er gibt ihr einen Apfel. | He gives her an apple. |
| wir | geben | we give | Wir geben dem Lehrer die Arbeit. | We give the teacher the work. |
| ihr | gebt | you give (plural) | Ihr gebt den Kindern Spielzeug. | You give the children toys. |
| sie/Sie | geben | they/you give | Sie geben ihm das Geschenk. | They give him the present. |
Simple Past Tense (Präteritum)
The simple past form of geben is used mainly in writing and formal speech.
| German Pronoun | German Conjugation | English Conjugation | German Example | English Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ich | gab | I gave | Ich gab dir mein Buch. | I gave you my book. |
| du | gabst | you gave | Du gabst ihr die Adresse. | You gave her the address. |
| er/sie/es | gab | he/she/it gave | Er gab ihm das Geld. | He gave him the money. |
| wir | gaben | we gave | Wir gaben dem Kind einen Ball. | We gave the child a ball. |
| ihr | gabt | you gave | Ihr gabt dem Lehrer die Noten. | You gave the teacher the grades. |
| sie/Sie | gaben | they/you gave | Sie gaben uns das Paket. | They gave us the package. |
Past Participle
The past participle of geben is gegeben. It is used with the auxiliary verb haben to form the perfect tense.
Example:
"Ich habe dir das Buch gegeben." – I have given you the book.
Usage Notes
- Geben often appears in fixed expressions such as es gibt (there is/are).
- As an irregular verb, geben changes its stem vowel from "e" to "i" in the present tense for du and er/sie/es forms.
