Meaning and Usage
The verb treffen means to meet or to hit in German. It is commonly used to express meeting someone in person, but it can also refer to hitting a target. In everyday conversations, treffen often involves social contexts such as meeting friends, colleagues, or acquaintances.
Verb Type and Irregularity
Treffen is an irregular verb in German. It undergoes a vowel change in some of its forms, especially in the present tense and subjunctive mood. Like many strong verbs, it does not follow the regular conjugation patterns and must be memorized.
Present Tense Conjugation
The present tense of treffen shows a stem vowel change from e to i in the du and er/sie/es forms. The conjugation is as follows:
| German Pronoun | German Conjugation | English Conjugation | German Example | English Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ich | treffe | I meet | Ich treffe meine Freundin. | I meet my friend. |
| du | triffst | you meet | Du triffst ihn im Park. | You meet him in the park. |
| er/sie/es | trifft | he/she/it meets | Er trifft seine Kollegen oft. | He often meets his colleagues. |
| wir | treffen | we meet | Wir treffen uns um acht Uhr. | We meet at eight o'clock. |
| ihr | trefft | you (plural) meet | Ihr trefft euch im Café. | You all meet in the café. |
| sie/Sie | treffen | they/you (formal) meet | Sie treffen sich am Bahnhof. | They meet at the station. |
Past Tense and Participle
The simple past (Präteritum) of treffen also shows the vowel change to a, becoming traf. The past participle used in perfect tenses is getroffen.
Example sentences:
- Ich traf ihn gestern. (I met him yesterday.)
- Wir haben uns im Museum getroffen. (We have met at the museum.)
Common Phrases with Treffen
treffen is often part of reflexive phrases such as sich treffen (to meet up). Some examples include:
- Lass uns uns morgen treffen. (Let's meet tomorrow.)
- Sie treffen sich regelmäßig zum Mittagessen. (They meet regularly for lunch.)
Understanding treffen helps with expressing various social activities in German effectively.
