Anmachen Conjugation in German

anmachen means “to switch on” in English, and it is a verb German learners meet early and use often. This page gives you the complete conjugation of anmachen — every tense, every person, the participles and the infinitive — with notes, examples, common mistakes and a quiz. Here is the verb in a natural sentence: “Ich mache das Licht im Zimmer an.” — “I switch on the light in the room.” Learning the forms on this page first, before you try to use the verb in conversation, saves you from guessing later: German endings change with the person and the tense, and anmachen is no exception. Work through the tables one tense at a time, say each form aloud, and then test yourself with the quiz at the end.

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: anmachen
  • English: to switch on
  • Verb type: Weak separable verb
  • Irregular in: present, preterite, past-participle, imperative
  • Present participle (Partizip I): anmachend
  • Past participle (Partizip II): angemacht
  • Auxiliary: haben (all perfect tenses are formed with haben + the past participle)
  • Separable prefix: an — the prefix splits off in finite forms (for example, mache an) and takes ge- between prefix and stem in the past participle (angemacht).

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for anmachen, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

Full conjugation tables

Every form below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for anmachen. Learn the present tense first, then the Perfekt and the Präteritum, and add the remaining tenses one at a time.

Present (Präsens)

Person Form
ich mache an
du machst an
er/sie/es macht an
wir machen an
ihr macht an
sie/Sie machen an

Preterite (Präteritum)

Person Form
ich machte an
du machtest an
er/sie/es machte an
wir machten an
ihr machtet an
sie/Sie machten an

Perfect (Perfekt)

Person Form
ich habe angemacht
du hast angemacht
er/sie/es hat angemacht
wir haben angemacht
ihr habt angemacht
sie/Sie haben angemacht

Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)

Person Form
ich hatte angemacht
du hattest angemacht
er/sie/es hatte angemacht
wir hatten angemacht
ihr hattet angemacht
sie/Sie hatten angemacht

Future (Futur I)

Person Form
ich werde anmachen
du wirst anmachen
er/sie/es wird anmachen
wir werden anmachen
ihr werdet anmachen
sie/Sie werden anmachen

Future perfect (Futur II)

Person Form
ich werde angemacht haben
du wirst angemacht haben
er/sie/es wird angemacht haben
wir werden angemacht haben
ihr werdet angemacht haben
sie/Sie werden angemacht haben

Konjunktiv I

Person Form
ich mache an
du machest an
er/sie/es mache an
wir machen an
ihr machet an
sie/Sie machen an

Konjunktiv II

Person Form
ich machte an
du machtest an
er/sie/es machte an
wir machten an
ihr machtet an
sie/Sie machten an

Conditional perfect

Person Form
ich hätte angemacht
du hättest angemacht
er/sie/es hätte angemacht
wir hätten angemacht
ihr hättet angemacht
sie/Sie hätten angemacht

Imperative (Imperativ)

Person Form
du mach an
wir anmachen
ihr macht an
sie/Sie anmachen

Participles and infinitive

Form German
Present participle (Partizip I) anmachend
Past participle (Partizip II) angemacht
Infinitive anmachen

When to use each tense

Present (Präsens)

The present tense is used for habits, facts and things happening now. With anmachen this tense is irregular, so the forms do not follow the regular pattern — learn them as a set rather than guessing from the infinitive. For example: “Ich mache das Licht im Zimmer an.” — “I switch on the light in the room.”

Preterite (Präteritum)

The preterite is used for completed actions in the past, especially in writing and narration. With anmachen this tense is irregular, so the forms do not follow the regular pattern — learn them as a set rather than guessing from the infinitive. For example: “Du machtest das Licht im Zimmer an.” — “You switched on the light in the room.”

Perfect (Perfekt)

The Perfekt is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken German. With anmachen it is formed with haben + the past participle angemacht. For example: “Er hat das Licht im Zimmer angemacht.” — “He has switched on the light in the room.”

Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)

The Plusquamperfekt is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Wir hatten das Licht im Zimmer angemacht.” — “We had switched on the light in the room.”

Future (Futur I)

The Futur I is used for what will happen, predictions and promises. For example: “Ihr werdet das Licht im Zimmer anmachen.” — “You will switch on the light in the room.”

Future perfect (Futur II)

The Futur II is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Sie werden das Licht im Zimmer angemacht haben.” — “They will have switched on the light in the room.”

Konjunktiv I

The Konjunktiv I is used for reported speech and indirect quotation. For example: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich das Licht im Zimmer anmache.” — “It is important that I switch on the light in the room.”

Konjunktiv II

The Konjunktiv II is used for wishes, polite requests and hypothetical situations — it also doubles as the conditional. There is no separate würde tense in the tables: the Konjunktiv II forms below do the work of the conditional, and würde + infinitive is the periphrastic alternative you will hear in speech. For example: “Du machtest das Licht im Zimmer an.” — “You would switch on the light in the room if you could.”

Conditional perfect

The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Er hätte das Licht im Zimmer angemacht.” — “He would have switched on the light in the room if he had been able to.”

Imperative (Imperativ)

The imperative is used for direct commands and instructions. With anmachen this tense is irregular, so the forms do not follow the regular pattern — learn them as a set rather than guessing from the infinitive. For example: “Mach das Licht im Zimmer an!” — “Switch on the light in the room!”

Participles and infinitive

The present participle is anmachend — “while switching on” — used as an adjective or adverb. The past participle is angemacht, used with haben for the perfect tenses, as in habe angemacht. The infinitive is anmachen.

Example sentences

Ten natural sentences with anmachen, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the German and try to produce it from the English.

  1. “Ich mache das Licht im Zimmer an.” — “I switch on the light in the room.”
  2. “Du machst das Licht im Zimmer an.” — “You switch on the light in the room.”
  3. “Er machte das Licht im Zimmer an.” — “He switched on the light in the room.”
  4. “Ich habe das Licht im Zimmer angemacht.” — “I have switched on the light in the room.”
  5. “Er hatte das Licht im Zimmer angemacht.” — “He had switched on the light in the room.”
  6. “Wir werden das Licht im Zimmer anmachen.” — “We will switch on the light in the room.”
  7. “Ich werde das Licht im Zimmer angemacht haben.” — “I will have switched on the light in the room.”
  8. “Es ist wichtig, dass ich das Licht im Zimmer anmache.” — “It is important that I switch on the light in the room.”
  9. “Ich machte das Licht im Zimmer an.” — “I would switch on the light in the room if I could.”
  10. “Mach das Licht im Zimmer an!” — “Switch on the light in the room!”

Common mistakes

1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Ich anmachen das Licht im Zimmer.”

✓ Right: “Ich mache das Licht im Zimmer an.”

The infinitive anmachen never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated present form mache an.

2. Confusing anmachen with ausmachen

✗ Wrong: “Ich ausmachen das Licht im Zimmer.” (using the wrong verb)

✓ Right: “Ich mache das Licht im Zimmer an.”

anmachen means “to switch on”; ausmachen means “to agree”. Keep the two verbs apart by their meaning, not by their sound.

3. Forgetting to split the separable prefix

✗ Wrong: “Ich anmachen das Licht im Zimmer.” (prefix left attached to the stem)

✓ Right: “Ich mache das Licht im Zimmer an.”

anmachen is separable: in finite forms the prefix an goes to the end of the clause — mache an — not next to the stem.

4. Using the indicative after a Konjunktiv I trigger

✗ Wrong: “Es ist wichtig, dass du das Licht im Zimmer anmachst.”

✓ Right: “Es ist wichtig, dass du das Licht im Zimmer anmachest.”

After es ist wichtig, dass German needs Konjunktiv I, so use machest an here, not the indicative machst an.

5. Using the present for a finished past event

✗ Wrong: “Ich mache das Licht im Zimmer an.”

✓ Right: “Ich habe das Licht im Zimmer angemacht.”

Yesterday’s finished event needs the Perfekt (habe angemacht), not the present.

Quiz: test yourself

  1. What is the ich form of anmachen in the Present (Präsens)?

    • A) mache an
    • B) machen an
    • C) machst an
    • D) macht an

  2. What is the er/sie/es form of anmachen in the Present (Präsens)?

    • A) machen an
    • B) mache an
    • C) macht an
    • D) machst an

  3. What is the ich form of anmachen in the Preterite (Präteritum)?

    • A) machten an
    • B) machtet an
    • C) machtest an
    • D) machte an

  4. What is the ich form of anmachen in the Perfect (Perfekt)?

    • A) habe angemacht
    • B) habt angemacht
    • C) hast angemacht
    • D) hat angemacht

  5. What is the wir form of anmachen in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)?

    • A) hattest angemacht
    • B) hatte angemacht
    • C) hattet angemacht
    • D) hatten angemacht

  6. What is the du form of anmachen in the Future (Futur I)?

    • A) wirst anmachen
    • B) werde anmachen
    • C) werdet anmachen
    • D) wird anmachen

  7. What is the ich form of anmachen in the Future perfect (Futur II)?

    • A) werde angemacht haben
    • B) wird angemacht haben
    • C) wirst angemacht haben
    • D) werden angemacht haben

  8. What is the ich form of anmachen in the Konjunktiv II?

    • A) machtet an
    • B) machten an
    • C) machte an
    • D) machtest an

  9. What is the past participle of anmachen?

    • A) mache an
    • B) angemacht
    • C) anmachend
    • D) machte an

  10. What does anmachen mean in English?

  • A) to come
  • B) to switch on
  • C) to do
  • D) to agree

Answer key

  1. A) mache an — the ich form of anmachen in the present tense is mache an.
  2. C) macht an — the er/sie/es form of anmachen in the present tense is macht an.
  3. D) machte an — the ich form of anmachen in the preterite is machte an.
  4. A) habe angemacht — the ich form of anmachen in the Perfekt is habe angemacht.
  5. D) hatten angemacht — the wir form of anmachen in the Plusquamperfekt is hatten angemacht.
  6. A) wirst anmachen — the du form of anmachen in the Futur I is wirst anmachen.
  7. A) werde angemacht haben — the ich form of anmachen in the Futur II is werde angemacht haben.
  8. C) machte an — the ich form of anmachen in the Konjunktiv II is machte an.
  9. B) angemacht — the past participle of anmachen is angemacht; perfect tenses use haben + angemacht.
  10. B) to switch on — anmachen means “to switch on” in English.

Frequently asked questions

What does anmachen mean in English?

anmachen means “to switch on”. You use it in everyday situations like the examples on this page — for example, “Ich mache das Licht im Zimmer an.” (“I switch on the light in the room.”). It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.

Is anmachen regular or irregular?

anmachen is irregular, and it is irregular in these tenses: present, preterite, past-participle, imperative. The present participle is anmachend and the past participle is angemacht.

What are the participles of anmachen?

The present participle is anmachend and the past participle is angemacht — use it with haben for the perfect tenses, as in habe angemacht.

What is the difference between anmachen and ausmachen?

anmachen means “to switch on”, while ausmachen means “to agree”. They are easy to mix up because they appear in similar situations, but their meanings are different. If you are unsure, check the full conjugation page for ausmachen and compare the meanings in context.

How do I say “I switch on” in German?

Say “Ich mache das Licht im Zimmer an.” — “I switch on the light in the room.” The ich form of the present is mache an, and it is the form you will use most often.

How to learn anmachen

Start with the present tense: mache an, machst an, macht an, machen an, macht an, machen an. Say them in order every day for a week, then add the Perfekt — habe angemacht — and the Präteritum — machte an. Next, learn the future (werde anmachen) and the Konjunktiv II (machte an), which also does the work of the conditional. Finally, tackle Konjunktiv I (mache an) and the imperative (mach an). Write one sentence of your own in each tense, using the examples above as models, and check every form against the tables. When you can produce all six persons of the present without looking, move on to the quiz.

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