helfen is an irregular verb in German that means "to help." It is a dative verb, which means it requires the dative case for the person who is being helped.

Meaning and Usage

helfen means "to help" or "to assist" someone.
It always takes a dative object (the person being helped).
It can be used in various tenses and moods.
Common in both spoken and written German.

Example:

Ich helfe dir. (I help you.)

Conjugation

helfen is irregular and uses the stem helf- in most forms but changes to hilf- in some. The past participle is geholfen, and the simple past stem is half-.

Fill in the blank: Ich habe dir geholfen. (I have helped you. — Past participle of helfen)

geholft

gehifen

gehalf

geholfen

geholfen

The past participle of **helfen** is 'geholfen,' used with 'haben' in perfect tenses.

Additional Usage Examples

Kannst du mir helfen? (Can you help me?)
Wir helfen unseren Eltern. (We help our parents.)
Er hat gestern geholfen. (He helped yesterday.)

Fill in the blank: Wir helfen unseren ___ im Haushalt. (We help our parents around the house.)

Freunden

Lehrern

Kindern

Eltern

Eltern

'Eltern' means 'parents,' which fits the context of the given German sentence.

Summary

helfen means "to help."
Takes a dative object.
Irregular stem changes: hilf-, helf-, half-.
Partizip II: geholfen.
Used in various tenses and contexts.

Last updated: Wed Jun 18, 2025