Backen Conjugation in German
backen means “to bake” in English, and it is a verb German learners meet early and use often. This page gives you the complete conjugation of backen — 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 backe einen Kuchen am Sonntag.” — “I bake a cake on Sunday.” 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 backen 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: backen
- English: to bake
- Verb type: Mixed verb
- Irregular in: present, preterite, past-participle, imperative
- Present participle (Partizip I): backend
- Past participle (Partizip II): gebacken
- Auxiliary: haben (all perfect tenses are formed with haben + the past participle)
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for backen, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
backen is a mixed verb with a vowel change in the present tense: the stem vowel changes from a → ä in the du and er/sie/es forms — bäckst, bäckt — while ich, wir, ihr and sie keep the plain stem. The preterite changes the stem again (backte), and the past participle is gebacken.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for backen. 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 | backe |
| du | bäckst |
| er/sie/es | bäckt |
| wir | backen |
| ihr | backt |
| sie/Sie | backen |
Preterite (Präteritum)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | backte |
| du | backtest |
| er/sie/es | backte |
| wir | backten |
| ihr | backtet |
| sie/Sie | backten |
Perfect (Perfekt)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | habe gebacken |
| du | hast gebacken |
| er/sie/es | hat gebacken |
| wir | haben gebacken |
| ihr | habt gebacken |
| sie/Sie | haben gebacken |
Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | hatte gebacken |
| du | hattest gebacken |
| er/sie/es | hatte gebacken |
| wir | hatten gebacken |
| ihr | hattet gebacken |
| sie/Sie | hatten gebacken |
Future (Futur I)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | werde backen |
| du | wirst backen |
| er/sie/es | wird backen |
| wir | werden backen |
| ihr | werdet backen |
| sie/Sie | werden backen |
Future perfect (Futur II)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | werde gebacken haben |
| du | wirst gebacken haben |
| er/sie/es | wird gebacken haben |
| wir | werden gebacken haben |
| ihr | werdet gebacken haben |
| sie/Sie | werden gebacken haben |
Konjunktiv I
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | backe |
| du | backest |
| er/sie/es | backe |
| wir | backen |
| ihr | backet |
| sie/Sie | backen |
Konjunktiv II
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | büke |
| du | bükest |
| er/sie/es | büke |
| wir | büken |
| ihr | büket |
| sie/Sie | büken |
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | hätte gebacken |
| du | hättest gebacken |
| er/sie/es | hätte gebacken |
| wir | hätten gebacken |
| ihr | hättet gebacken |
| sie/Sie | hätten gebacken |
Imperative (Imperativ)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| du | back |
| wir | backen |
| ihr | backt |
| sie/Sie | backen |
Participles and infinitive
| Form | German |
|---|---|
| Present participle (Partizip I) | backend |
| Past participle (Partizip II) | gebacken |
| Infinitive | backen |
When to use each tense
Present (Präsens)
The present tense is used for habits, facts and things happening now. With backen 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 backe einen Kuchen am Sonntag.” — “I bake a cake on Sunday.”
Preterite (Präteritum)
The preterite is used for completed actions in the past, especially in writing and narration. With backen 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 backtest einen Kuchen am Sonntag.” — “You baked a cake on Sunday.”
Perfect (Perfekt)
The Perfekt is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken German. With backen it is formed with haben + the past participle gebacken. For example: “Er hat einen Kuchen am Sonntag gebacken.” — “He has baked a cake on Sunday.”
Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)
The Plusquamperfekt is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Wir hatten einen Kuchen am Sonntag gebacken.” — “We had baked a cake on Sunday.”
Future (Futur I)
The Futur I is used for what will happen, predictions and promises. For example: “Ihr werdet einen Kuchen am Sonntag backen.” — “You will bake a cake on Sunday.”
Future perfect (Futur II)
The Futur II is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Sie werden einen Kuchen am Sonntag gebacken haben.” — “They will have baked a cake on Sunday.”
Konjunktiv I
The Konjunktiv I is used for reported speech and indirect quotation. For example: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich einen Kuchen am Sonntag backe.” — “It is important that I bake a cake on Sunday.”
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 bükest einen Kuchen am Sonntag.” — “You would bake a cake on Sunday if you could.”
Conditional perfect
The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Er hätte einen Kuchen am Sonntag gebacken.” — “He would have baked a cake on Sunday if he had been able to.”
Imperative (Imperativ)
The imperative is used for direct commands and instructions. With backen 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: “Back einen Kuchen am Sonntag!” — “Bake a cake on Sunday!”
Participles and infinitive
The present participle is backend — “while baking” — used as an adjective or adverb. The past participle is gebacken, used with haben for the perfect tenses, as in habe gebacken. The infinitive is backen.
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with backen, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the German and try to produce it from the English.
- “Ich backe einen Kuchen am Sonntag.” — “I bake a cake on Sunday.”
- “Du bäckst einen Kuchen am Sonntag.” — “You bake a cake on Sunday.”
- “Er backte einen Kuchen am Sonntag.” — “He baked a cake on Sunday.”
- “Ich habe einen Kuchen am Sonntag gebacken.” — “I have baked a cake on Sunday.”
- “Er hatte einen Kuchen am Sonntag gebacken.” — “He had baked a cake on Sunday.”
- “Wir werden einen Kuchen am Sonntag backen.” — “We will bake a cake on Sunday.”
- “Ich werde einen Kuchen am Sonntag gebacken haben.” — “I will have baked a cake on Sunday.”
- “Es ist wichtig, dass ich einen Kuchen am Sonntag backe.” — “It is important that I bake a cake on Sunday.”
- “Ich büke einen Kuchen am Sonntag.” — “I would bake a cake on Sunday if I could.”
- “Back einen Kuchen am Sonntag!” — “Bake a cake on Sunday!”
Common mistakes
1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Ich backen einen Kuchen am Sonntag.”
✓ Right: “Ich backe einen Kuchen am Sonntag.”
The infinitive backen never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated present form backe.
2. Confusing backen with kochen
✗ Wrong: “Ich kochen einen Kuchen am Sonntag.” (using the wrong verb)
✓ Right: “Ich backe einen Kuchen am Sonntag.”
backen means “to bake”; kochen means “to cook”. Keep the two verbs apart by their meaning, not by their sound.
3. Applying the regular pattern to backen
✗ Wrong: “Ich backte einen Kuchen am Sonntag.” (a guessed regular preterite)
✓ Right: “Ich backte einen Kuchen am Sonntag.”
backen is irregular in present, preterite, past-participle, imperative. The preterite form for ich is backte, not what the regular -te endings would give — learn it as a set.
4. Using the indicative after a Konjunktiv I trigger
✗ Wrong: “Es ist wichtig, dass du einen Kuchen am Sonntag bäckst.”
✓ Right: “Es ist wichtig, dass du einen Kuchen am Sonntag backest.”
After es ist wichtig, dass German needs Konjunktiv I, so use backest here, not the indicative bäckst.
5. Using the present for a finished past event
✗ Wrong: “Ich backe einen Kuchen am Sonntag.”
✓ Right: “Ich habe einen Kuchen am Sonntag gebacken.”
Yesterday’s finished event needs the Perfekt (habe gebacken), not the present.
Quiz: test yourself
What is the ich form of backen in the Present (Präsens)?
- A) bäckst
- B) backe
- C) backt
- D) bäckt
What is the er/sie/es form of backen in the Present (Präsens)?
- A) bäckst
- B) backt
- C) backe
- D) bäckt
What is the ich form of backen in the Preterite (Präteritum)?
- A) backtet
- B) backte
- C) backtest
- D) backten
What is the ich form of backen in the Perfect (Perfekt)?
- A) habt gebacken
- B) hat gebacken
- C) hast gebacken
- D) habe gebacken
What is the wir form of backen in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)?
- A) hatte gebacken
- B) hatten gebacken
- C) hattet gebacken
- D) hattest gebacken
What is the du form of backen in the Future (Futur I)?
- A) werdet backen
- B) wirst backen
- C) werden backen
- D) werde backen
What is the ich form of backen in the Future perfect (Futur II)?
- A) werdet gebacken haben
- B) wird gebacken haben
- C) werde gebacken haben
- D) werden gebacken haben
What is the ich form of backen in the Konjunktiv II?
- A) büken
- B) büke
- C) büket
- D) bükest
What is the past participle of backen?
- A) backte
- B) backend
- C) backe
- D) gebacken
What does backen mean in English?
- A) to do
- B) to bake
- C) to cook
- D) to come
Answer key
- B) backe — the ich form of backen in the present tense is backe.
- D) bäckt — the er/sie/es form of backen in the present tense is bäckt.
- B) backte — the ich form of backen in the preterite is backte.
- D) habe gebacken — the ich form of backen in the Perfekt is habe gebacken.
- B) hatten gebacken — the wir form of backen in the Plusquamperfekt is hatten gebacken.
- B) wirst backen — the du form of backen in the Futur I is wirst backen.
- C) werde gebacken haben — the ich form of backen in the Futur II is werde gebacken haben.
- B) büke — the ich form of backen in the Konjunktiv II is büke.
- D) gebacken — the past participle of backen is gebacken; perfect tenses use haben + gebacken.
- B) to bake — backen means “to bake” in English.
Frequently asked questions
What does backen mean in English?
backen means “to bake”. You use it in everyday situations like the examples on this page — for example, “Ich backe einen Kuchen am Sonntag.” (“I bake a cake on Sunday.”). It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is backen regular or irregular?
backen is irregular, and it is irregular in these tenses: present, preterite, past-participle, imperative. The present participle is backend and the past participle is gebacken.
What are the participles of backen?
The present participle is backend and the past participle is gebacken — use it with haben for the perfect tenses, as in habe gebacken.
What is the difference between backen and kochen?
backen means “to bake”, while kochen means “to cook”. 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 kochen and compare the meanings in context.
How do I say “I bake” in German?
Say “Ich backe einen Kuchen am Sonntag.” — “I bake a cake on Sunday.” The ich form of the present is backe, and it is the form you will use most often.
How to learn backen
Start with the present tense: backe, bäckst, bäckt, backen, backt, backen. Say them in order every day for a week, then add the Perfekt — habe gebacken — and the Präteritum — backte. Next, learn the future (werde backen) and the Konjunktiv II (büke), which also does the work of the conditional. Finally, tackle Konjunktiv I (backe) and the imperative (back). 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.
Related pages
- backen in the Perfekt tense — the full table and uses for this verb in the Perfekt tense.
- backen examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- German verbs — the full hub of German conjugation pages.
- German irregular verbs — every common irregular German verb, grouped by pattern.
- Einladen conjugation — another German verb to practise with.
- Treffen conjugation — another German verb to practise with.
- Spanish verbs — the full hub of Spanish conjugation pages.
- French verbs — the full hub of French conjugation pages.
- Verb Conjugator — practise backen with the interactive tool.
- Verb Quiz — practise backen with the interactive tool.
- Perfect Tenses Builder — practise the perfect tenses with the interactive tool.
- VerbFlow home — back to the start.