Meaning and Usage
The verb verlieren means to lose in English. It is used when someone loses something physical, abstract, or metaphorical, such as keys, a game, or hope. It is an irregular verb in German with a stem change in some forms.
Verb Type
Verlieren is a strong (irregular) verb that changes its stem vowel in the past tense and past participle forms. It belongs to the group of verbs with vowel change e>o>o.
Present Tense Conjugation
In the present tense, verlieren follows regular conjugation patterns but without stem vowel change.
| German Pronoun | German Conjugation | English Conjugation | German Example | English Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ich | verliere | I lose | Ich verliere oft meine Schlüssel. | I often lose my keys. |
| du | verlierst | you lose (informal) | Du verlierst das Spiel. | You lose the game. |
| er/sie/es | verliert | he/she/it loses | Er verliert das Rennen. | He loses the race. |
| wir | verlieren | we lose | Wir verlieren manchmal den Weg. | We sometimes lose the way. |
| ihr | verliert | you lose (plural) | Ihr verliert nie das Vertrauen. | You never lose trust. |
| sie/Sie | verlieren | they/you lose (formal) | Sie verlieren das Match. | They lose the match. |
Simple Past Tense Conjugation
In the simple past, verlieren shows a stem vowel change from e to o.
| German Pronoun | German Conjugation | English Conjugation | German Example | English Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ich | verlor | I lost | Ich verlor meinen Pass. | I lost my passport. |
| du | verlorst | you lost (informal) | Du verlorst das Ticket. | You lost the ticket. |
| er/sie/es | verlor | he/she/it lost | Sie verlor ihr Geld. | She lost her money. |
| wir | verloren | we lost | Wir verloren das Spiel. | We lost the game. |
| ihr | verlort | you lost (plural) | Ihr verlort die Schlüssel. | You lost the keys. |
| sie/Sie | verloren | they/you lost (formal) | Sie verloren die Geduld. | They lost their patience. |
Past Participle
The past participle of verlieren is verloren, used with the auxiliary verb haben in perfect tenses.
Example:
Ich habe meinen Ausweis verloren.
I have lost my ID.
Common Idiomatic Expressions
- etwas aus den Augen verlieren – to lose sight of something
- den Mut verlieren – to lose courage
- die Hoffnung verlieren – to lose hope
These expressions make use of verlieren to express abstract losing concepts.
Summary
Verlieren is an important verb to express losing in many contexts, from physical objects to abstract feelings. Its present tense conjugation is regular, but past tenses require attention to the vowel stem change.
