Baden: Examples, Sentences and Quiz in German
Introduction
Baden means “to bathe”, 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 baden, 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 baden, in different tenses and with different subjects. Read the German first, guess the meaning, then check the English.
- “Ich bade im See jeden Tag.” — “I bathe in the lake every day.”
- “Du badest im Meer jeden Tag.” — “You bathe in the sea every day.”
- “Ich habe in der Badewanne gebadet gestern.” — “I have bathed in the bathtub yesterday.”
- “Er badete im See gestern.” — “He bathed in the lake yesterday.”
- “Wir werden im Meer baden morgen.” — “We will bathe in the sea tomorrow.”
- “Du hast in der Badewanne gebadet gestern.” — “You have bathed in the bathtub yesterday.”
- “Ich badete im See eines Tages.” — “I would bathe in the lake one day.”
- “Es ist wichtig, dass er bade im Meer.” — “It is important that he bathe in the sea.”
- “Wir hatten in der Badewanne gebadet vor der Party.” — “We had bathed in the bathtub before the party.”
- “Er wird im See baden morgen.” — “He will bathe in the lake tomorrow.”
- “Sie baden im Meer jeden Tag.” — “They bathe in the sea every day.”
- “Bade in der Badewanne!” — “Bathe in the bathtub!”
A short dialogue
Lena and Jonas are talking about in the lake. Read the dialogue aloud, one voice per person, and notice how baden changes with the tense and the subject. Every form of baden below is taken from the verified tables.
Lena: “Du badest im See jeden Tag.” — “You bathe in the lake every day.” Jonas: “Ich bade im See jeden Tag.” — “I bathe in the lake every day.” Lena: “Du wirst im Meer baden morgen.” — “You will bathe in the sea tomorrow.” Jonas: “Ich werde im Meer baden morgen.” — “I will bathe in the sea tomorrow.” Lena: “Du hast in der Badewanne gebadet gestern.” — “You have bathed in the bathtub yesterday.” Jonas: “Ich habe in der Badewanne gebadet gestern.” — “I have bathed in the bathtub yesterday.” Lena: “Du badetest im See eines Tages.” — “You would bathe in the lake one day.” Jonas: “Ich badete im See eines Tages.” — “I would bathe in the lake 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.
Baden in different tenses
The same verb does different jobs in different tenses. Here are the six uses of baden that matter most, each with a sentence you can copy and adapt.
The present: habits and facts
In the present, baden describes habits, facts and what is happening now. The ich form is bade: “Ich bade im See jeden Tag.” — “I bathe in the lake every day.”
The preterite: the past in stories
In the preterite, baden describes a completed past action, mostly in writing and stories. The er form is badete: “Er badete im Meer gestern.” — “He bathed in the sea yesterday.”
The Perfekt: finished actions
In the Perfekt, baden reports one finished action, built with haben plus the participle gebadet. The ich form is habe gebadet: “Ich habe in der Badewanne gebadet gestern.” — “I have bathed in the bathtub yesterday.”
The future: what will happen
In the future, baden talks about what will happen. The wir form is werden baden: “Wir werden im See baden morgen.” — “We will bathe in the lake tomorrow.”
Konjunktiv II: what would happen
In Konjunktiv II, baden 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 badetest: “Du badetest im Meer eines Tages.” — “You would bathe in the sea one day.”
Konjunktiv I: reported speech
In Konjunktiv I, baden appears in reported speech, after triggers such as es ist wichtig, dass. The form is bade, and the sentence keeps the same complement as the other tenses: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich bade in der Badewanne.” — “It is important that I bathe in the bathtub.”
Common mistakes
Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Ich baden im See.”
✓ Right: “Ich bade im See.”
The infinitive baden never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated form bade.
Using the wrong person’s form
✗ Wrong: “Du bade im See.”
✓ Right: “Du badest im See.”
bade is the ich form. With du you need badest. Check the subject before you choose the form.
Using the present for a finished past action
✗ Wrong: “Ich bade im See gestern.”
✓ Right: “Ich habe im See gebadet gestern.”
The time word gestern points to the past, so a finished action needs the Perfekt habe gebadet, not the present.
Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger
✗ Wrong: “Es ist wichtig, dass du badest im Meer.”
✓ Right: “Es ist wichtig, dass du badest im Meer.”
After es ist wichtig, dass German needs Konjunktiv I: badest, not the indicative badest.
Forgetting the auxiliary in the Perfekt
✗ Wrong: “Ich gebadet im See.”
✓ Right: “Ich habe im See gebadet.”
The Perfekt of baden needs the auxiliary haben plus the participle gebadet: the full ich form is habe gebadet.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on baden. Choose the right answer, then check the answer key below.
What is the ich form of baden in the Present (Präsens)?
- A) bade
- B) badest
- C) badet
- D) baden
What is the du form of baden in the Present (Präsens)?
- A) baden
- B) badest
- C) bade
- D) badet
What is the er/sie/es form of baden in the Perfect (Perfekt)?
- A) habe gebadet
- B) hast gebadet
- C) haben gebadet
- D) hat gebadet
What is the wir form of baden in the Preterite (Präteritum)?
- A) badetet
- B) badeten
- C) badete
- D) badetest
What is the du form of baden in the Future (Futur I)?
- A) werden baden
- B) wirst baden
- C) werde baden
- D) wird baden
What is the ich form of baden in the Konjunktiv II?
- A) badetest
- B) badeten
- C) badetet
- D) badete
What is the er/sie/es form of baden in the Konjunktiv I?
- A) bade
- B) badest
- C) baden
- D) badet
What is the ich form of baden in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)?
- A) hatten gebadet
- B) hattet gebadet
- C) hatte gebadet
- D) hattest gebadet
What is the past participle (Partizip II) of baden?
- A) gebadet
- B) angezogen
- C) ausgezogen
- D) aufgewacht
What does baden mean in English?
- A) to wake up
- B) to bathe
- C) to put on
- D) to take off
Answer key
- A) bade — the ich form of baden in the Present (Präsens) is bade. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) badest — the du form of baden in the Present (Präsens) is badest. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) hat gebadet — the er/sie/es form of baden in the Perfect (Perfekt) is hat gebadet. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) badeten — the wir form of baden in the Preterite (Präteritum) is badeten. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) wirst baden — the du form of baden in the Future (Futur I) is wirst baden. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) badete — the ich form of baden in the Konjunktiv II is badete. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) bade — the er/sie/es form of baden in the Konjunktiv I is bade. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) hatte gebadet — the ich form of baden in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt) is hatte gebadet. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) gebadet — the past participle of baden is gebadet. The other options are the participles of neighbouring verbs.
- B) to bathe — baden means “to bathe” in English. The other options are the meanings of neighbouring verbs.
Frequently asked questions
What does baden mean in English?
baden means “to bathe”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is baden regular or irregular?
baden is regular in every tense. Partizip I is badend and Partizip II is gebadet.
How do I practise baden every day?
Say one sentence with baden 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 bade im See jeden Tag.”, “Ich habe im See gebadet gestern.” and “Ich werde im See baden 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 baden, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of baden — every tense of baden in one place.
- Baden in the present tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Baden examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Anziehen conjugation — another everyday German verb.
- Ausziehen conjugation — another everyday German verb.
- Aufwachen conjugation — another everyday German verb.
- German verbs — the full hub of German conjugation pages.
- Spanish verbs — the full hub of Spanish conjugation pages.
- French verbs — the full hub of French conjugation pages.
- VerbFlow home — all languages, tools and verb lists.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — practise baden with the interactive tool.
- Conjugation Practice — practise baden with the interactive tool.
- Verb Translator — practise baden with the interactive tool.