Aussteigen: Examples, Sentences and Quiz in German

Introduction

Aussteigen means “to get out”, and it is one of the most useful verbs in German — you will meet it in conversation, in books, in films and in every textbook. This page puts the verb to work: twelve example sentences across the tenses, a short dialogue you can act out, a tour of the verb in its most important tenses, the mistakes learners make most often, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Every form on this page comes from the verified conjugation tables for aussteigen, so you can trust what you read here. Start with the examples, say them aloud, and then test yourself with the quiz at the end.

Example sentences

Twelve sentences with aussteigen, in different tenses and with different subjects. Read the German first, guess the meaning, then check the English.

  1. “Ich steige aus dem Zug aus jeden Tag.” — “I get out out of the train every day.”
  2. “Du steigst aus dem Bus aus jeden Tag.” — “You get out out of the bus every day.”
  3. “Ich bin aus dem Auto ausgestiegen gestern.” — “I have got out out of the car yesterday.”
  4. “Er stieg aus dem Zug aus gestern.” — “He got out out of the train yesterday.”
  5. “Wir werden aus dem Bus aussteigen morgen.” — “We will get out out of the bus tomorrow.”
  6. “Du bist aus dem Auto ausgestiegen gestern.” — “You have got out out of the car yesterday.”
  7. “Ich stiege aus dem Zug aus eines Tages.” — “I would get out out of the train one day.”
  8. “Es ist wichtig, dass er aussteige aus dem Bus.” — “It is important that he get out out of the bus.”
  9. “Wir waren aus dem Auto ausgestiegen vor der Party.” — “We had got out out of the car before the party.”
  10. “Er wird aus dem Zug aussteigen morgen.” — “He will get out out of the train tomorrow.”
  11. “Sie steigen aus dem Bus aus jeden Tag.” — “They get out out of the bus every day.”
  12. “Steig aus dem Auto aus!” — “Get out out of the car!”

A short dialogue

Lena and Jonas are talking about out of the train. Read the dialogue aloud, one voice per person, and notice how aussteigen changes with the tense and the subject. Every form of aussteigen below is taken from the verified tables.

Lena: “Du steigst aus dem Zug aus jeden Tag.” — “You get out out of the train every day.” Jonas: “Ich steige aus dem Zug aus jeden Tag.” — “I get out out of the train every day.” Lena: “Du wirst aus dem Bus aussteigen morgen.” — “You will get out out of the bus tomorrow.” Jonas: “Ich werde aus dem Bus aussteigen morgen.” — “I will get out out of the bus tomorrow.” Lena: “Du bist aus dem Auto ausgestiegen gestern.” — “You have got out out of the car yesterday.” Jonas: “Ich bin aus dem Auto ausgestiegen gestern.” — “I have got out out of the car yesterday.” Lena: “Du stiegest aus dem Zug aus eines Tages.” — “You would get out out of the train one day.” Jonas: “Ich stiege aus dem Zug aus eines Tages.” — “I would get out out of the train one day.”

Notice how the dialogue moves through time: the present for what is happening now, the future for tomorrow, the Perfekt for yesterday, and Konjunktiv II for what someone would do one day. The verb stays the same — only the tense changes — and that is the whole point of learning a conjugation table: one verb, many moments.

Aussteigen in different tenses

The same verb does different jobs in different tenses. Here are the six uses of aussteigen that matter most, each with a sentence you can copy and adapt.

The present: habits and facts

In the present, aussteigen describes habits, facts and what is happening now. The ich form is steige aus: “Ich steige aus dem Zug aus jeden Tag.” — “I get out out of the train every day.”

The preterite: the past in stories

In the preterite, aussteigen describes a completed past action, mostly in writing and stories. The er form is stieg aus: “Er stieg aus dem Bus aus gestern.” — “He got out out of the bus yesterday.”

The Perfekt: finished actions

In the Perfekt, aussteigen reports one finished action, built with sein plus the participle ausgestiegen. The ich form is bin ausgestiegen: “Ich bin aus dem Auto ausgestiegen gestern.” — “I have got out out of the car yesterday.”

The future: what will happen

In the future, aussteigen talks about what will happen. The wir form is werden aussteigen: “Wir werden aus dem Zug aussteigen morgen.” — “We will get out out of the train tomorrow.”

Konjunktiv II: what would happen

In Konjunktiv II, aussteigen talks about what would happen. Konjunktiv II doubles as the conditional, and the periphrastic alternative with würde plus the infinitive expresses the same meaning. The du form is stiegest aus: “Du stiegest aus dem Bus aus eines Tages.” — “You would get out out of the bus one day.”

Konjunktiv I: reported speech

In Konjunktiv I, aussteigen appears in reported speech, after triggers such as es ist wichtig, dass. The form is aussteige, and the sentence keeps the same complement as the other tenses: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich aussteige aus dem Auto.” — “It is important that I get out out of the car.”

Common mistakes

Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Ich aussteigen aus dem Zug.”

✓ Right: “Ich steige aus aus dem Zug.”

The infinitive aussteigen never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated form steige aus.

Using the wrong person’s form

✗ Wrong: “Du steige aus aus dem Zug.”

✓ Right: “Du steigst aus aus dem Zug.”

steige aus is the ich form. With du you need steigst aus. Check the subject before you choose the form.

Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Ich steige aus aus dem Zug gestern.”

✓ Right: “Ich bin aus dem Zug ausgestiegen gestern.”

The time word gestern points to the past, so a finished action needs the Perfekt bin ausgestiegen, not the present.

Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger

✗ Wrong: “Es ist wichtig, dass du steigst aus aus dem Bus.”

✓ Right: “Es ist wichtig, dass du aussteigest aus dem Bus.”

After es ist wichtig, dass German needs Konjunktiv I: aussteigest, not the indicative steigst aus.

Forgetting the auxiliary in the Perfekt

✗ Wrong: “Ich ausgestiegen aus dem Zug.”

✓ Right: “Ich bin aus dem Zug ausgestiegen.”

The Perfekt of aussteigen needs the auxiliary sein plus the participle ausgestiegen: the full ich form is bin ausgestiegen.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on aussteigen. Choose the right answer, then check the answer key below.

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

    • A) steigt aus
    • B) steigen aus
    • C) steige aus
    • D) steigst aus

  2. What is the du form of aussteigen in the Present (Präsens)?

    • A) steigst aus
    • B) steige aus
    • C) steigt aus
    • D) steigen aus

  3. What is the er/sie/es form of aussteigen in the Perfect (Perfekt)?

    • A) ist ausgestiegen
    • B) bin ausgestiegen
    • C) bist ausgestiegen
    • D) sind ausgestiegen

  4. What is the wir form of aussteigen in the Preterite (Präteritum)?

    • A) stiegen aus
    • B) stieg aus
    • C) stiegst aus
    • D) stiegt aus

  5. What is the du form of aussteigen in the Future (Futur I)?

    • A) werde aussteigen
    • B) wird aussteigen
    • C) werden aussteigen
    • D) wirst aussteigen

  6. What is the ich form of aussteigen in the Konjunktiv II?

    • A) stiegen aus
    • B) stieget aus
    • C) stiege aus
    • D) stiegest aus

  7. What is the er/sie/es form of aussteigen in the Konjunktiv I?

    • A) steigen aus
    • B) steiget aus
    • C) steige aus
    • D) steigest aus

  8. What is the ich form of aussteigen in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)?

    • A) waren ausgestiegen
    • B) wart ausgestiegen
    • C) war ausgestiegen
    • D) warst ausgestiegen

  9. What is the past participle (Partizip II) of aussteigen?

    • A) ausgestiegen
    • B) umgestiegen
    • C) gereist
    • D) besucht

  10. What does aussteigen mean in English?

  • A) to visit
  • B) to get out
  • C) to change (trains, vehicles), to transfer
  • D) to travel

Answer key

  1. C) steige aus — the ich form of aussteigen in the Present (Präsens) is steige aus. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. A) steigst aus — the du form of aussteigen in the Present (Präsens) is steigst aus. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. A) ist ausgestiegen — the er/sie/es form of aussteigen in the Perfect (Perfekt) is ist ausgestiegen. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) stiegen aus — the wir form of aussteigen in the Preterite (Präteritum) is stiegen aus. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. D) wirst aussteigen — the du form of aussteigen in the Future (Futur I) is wirst aussteigen. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) stiege aus — the ich form of aussteigen in the Konjunktiv II is stiege aus. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. C) steige aus — the er/sie/es form of aussteigen in the Konjunktiv I is steige aus. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. C) war ausgestiegen — the ich form of aussteigen in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt) is war ausgestiegen. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. A) ausgestiegen — the past participle of aussteigen is ausgestiegen. The other options are the participles of neighbouring verbs.
  10. B) to get out — aussteigen means “to get out” in English. The other options are the meanings of neighbouring verbs.

Frequently asked questions

What does aussteigen mean in English?

aussteigen means “to get out”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.

Is aussteigen regular or irregular?

aussteigen is irregular in these tenses: present, preterite, past-participle, imperative. Partizip I is aussteigend and Partizip II is ausgestiegen.

How do I practise aussteigen every day?

Say one sentence with aussteigen in the present, one in the Perfekt and one in the future every day, using the examples on this page as models — for example, “Ich steige aus dem Zug aus jeden Tag.”, “Ich bin aus dem Zug ausgestiegen gestern.” and “Ich werde aus dem Zug aussteigen morgen.”. Then take the quiz again and check your answers against the key.

Pronunciation

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

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