Bringen Conjugation in German
bringen means “to bring” in English, and it is one of the first verbs German learners meet — it sits at number 40 in VerbFlow’s frequency list for German verbs. You will meet it in everyday sentences such as “Ich bringe ein Buch für Marie.” — “I bring a book for Marie.” — and because it comes up in everyday conversation so often, learning its forms properly pays off from the very first week. This page gives you the complete conjugation of bringen — every tense, every person, the present participle and the past participle — with notes, examples, common mistakes and a quiz.
Quick facts
- Infinitive: bringen
- English: to bring
- Verb type: Irregular
- Irregular in: present, preterite, past-participle, imperative
- Present participle (Partizip I): bringend
- Past participle (Partizip II): gebracht
- Auxiliary: haben (all perfect tenses are formed with haben + the past participle)
- Pattern: mixed in the verified tables
Pronunciation
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for bringen, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one. Learn the spelling of the forms first, and listen to a native speaker for the sounds rather than trusting an invented transcription. The forms below are the ones that matter: once you can read bringen in every tense, you can recognise it in speech even before you can pronounce every form perfectly.
Three things to remember about bringen
- It is irregular in 4 tense(s): present, preterite, past-participle, imperative. Learn those forms as a set rather than guessing them from the infinitive, because the regular pattern will not produce them.
- The perfect tenses use haben: the Perfekt is formed with haben in the present plus the past participle gebracht. The tables on this page give the participle in the form exactly as it appears in the verified dump; the participle itself does not change for person, only the auxiliary does.
- The participles are bringend and gebracht: keep both in mind as you read the tables, because the present participle appears as an adjective and the past participle appears in every perfect tense. If you know those two forms and the present tense, you already know the skeleton of the whole conjugation.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for bringen. Learn the present tense first, then the Perfekt and the preterite, and add the remaining tenses one at a time.
Present (Präsens)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | bringe |
| du | bringst |
| er/sie/es | bringt |
| wir | bringen |
| ihr | bringt |
| sie/Sie | bringen |
The present (Präsens) is used for habits, facts and things happening now. With bringen 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 bringe den Kindern ein Geschenk.” — “I bring a present for the children.”
Preterite (Präteritum)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | brachte |
| du | brachtest |
| er/sie/es | brachte |
| wir | brachten |
| ihr | brachtet |
| sie/Sie | brachten |
The preterite (Präteritum) is used for completed actions in the past, mostly in written German and in stories. With bringen 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 brachtest den Kindern ein Geschenk.” — “You brought a present for the children.”
Perfect (Perfekt)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | habe gebracht |
| du | hast gebracht |
| er/sie/es | hat gebracht |
| wir | haben gebracht |
| ihr | habt gebracht |
| sie/Sie | haben gebracht |
The perfect (Perfekt) is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken German. For example: “Er hat den Kindern ein Geschenk gebracht.” — “He has brought a present for the children.”
Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | hatte gebracht |
| du | hattest gebracht |
| er/sie/es | hatte gebracht |
| wir | hatten gebracht |
| ihr | hattet gebracht |
| sie/Sie | hatten gebracht |
The pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt) is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Ich hatte den Kindern ein Geschenk gebracht.” — “I had brought a present for the children.”
Future (Futur I)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | werde bringen |
| du | wirst bringen |
| er/sie/es | wird bringen |
| wir | werden bringen |
| ihr | werdet bringen |
| sie/Sie | werden bringen |
The future (Futur I) is used for what will happen, for predictions and for intentions. For example: “Ich werde den Kindern ein Geschenk bringen.” — “I will bring a present for the children.”
Future perfect (Futur II)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | werde gebracht haben |
| du | wirst gebracht haben |
| er/sie/es | wird gebracht haben |
| wir | werden gebracht haben |
| ihr | werdet gebracht haben |
| sie/Sie | werden gebracht haben |
The future perfect (Futur II) is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Du wirst den Kindern ein Geschenk gebracht haben.” — “You will have brought a present for the children.”
Konjunktiv I
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | bringe |
| du | bringest |
| er/sie/es | bringe |
| wir | bringen |
| ihr | bringet |
| sie/Sie | bringen |
Konjunktiv I is used for reported speech — reporting what someone else said — and in formal written German. For example: “Er bringe den Kindern ein Geschenk.” — “He brings a present for the children.”
Konjunktiv II (conditional)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | brächte |
| du | brächtest |
| er/sie/es | brächte |
| wir | brächten |
| ihr | brächtet |
| sie/Sie | brächten |
Konjunktiv II is used for hypothetical situations, wishes and polite requests. It doubles as the German conditional: there is no separate conditional tense, and the periphrastic alternative with würde + infinitive is not an engine tense. For example: “Ich brächte den Kindern ein Geschenk.” — “I would bring a present for the children.”
Conditional perfect (Konjunktiv II + participle)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | hätte gebracht |
| du | hättest gebracht |
| er/sie/es | hätte gebracht |
| wir | hätten gebracht |
| ihr | hättet gebracht |
| sie/Sie | hätten gebracht |
The conditional perfect (Konjunktiv II + past participle) is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Er hätte den Kindern ein Geschenk gebracht.” — “He would have brought a present for the children.”
Imperative (Imperativ)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| du | bring |
| wir | bringen |
| ihr | bringt |
| sie/Sie | bringen |
The imperative (Imperativ) is used for direct commands, requests and instructions. With bringen 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: “Bring den Kindern ein Geschenk!” — “Bring a present for the children!”
Present participle (Partizip I)
| Form | German |
|---|---|
| Present participle (Partizip I) | bringend |
The present participle (Partizip I) is used as an adjective or adverb, describing an ongoing action. For example, the participle bringend is used to describe something that is happening at the same time as the main action, much like an English -ing adjective.
Past participle (Partizip II)
| Form | German |
|---|---|
| Past participle (Partizip II) | gebracht |
The past participle (Partizip II) is used with an auxiliary to form the perfect tenses, and as an adjective. For example: “Ich habe ein Buch für Marie gebracht.” — “I have brought a book for Marie.”
Infinitive (Infinitiv)
| Form | German |
|---|---|
| Infinitive | bringen |
The infinitive is the dictionary form of the verb, used after modal verbs and other verbs that take an infinitive. The infinitive is the dictionary form of the verb: it is the form you look up, and the form that follows modal verbs and other verbs that take an infinitive.
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with bringen, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the German and try to produce it from the English.
- “Ich bringe ein Buch für Marie.” — “I bring a book for Marie.”
- “Du brachtest den Kindern ein Geschenk.” — “You brought a present for the children.”
- “Er hat mir einen Kaffee gebracht.” — “He has brought me a coffee.”
- “Ich werde ein Buch für Marie bringen.” — “I will bring a book for Marie.”
- “Du brächtest den Kindern ein Geschenk.” — “You would bring a present for the children.”
- “Ich hatte mir einen Kaffee gebracht.” — “I had brought me a coffee.”
- “Du wirst den Kindern ein Geschenk gebracht haben.” — “You will have brought a present for the children.”
- “Er bringe mir einen Kaffee.” — “He brings me a coffee.”
- “Ich hätte ein Buch für Marie gebracht.” — “I would have brought a book for Marie.”
- “Bring ein Buch für Marie!” — “Bring a book for Marie!”
Common mistakes
1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Ich bringen ein Buch für Marie.”
✓ Right: “Ich bringe ein Buch für Marie.”
The infinitive bringen never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated present form bringe.
2. Using the wrong person’s form
✗ Wrong: “Ich bringen ein Buch für Marie.”
✓ Right: “Ich bringe ein Buch für Marie.”
bringen is the sie form, not the ich form. Match the verb to the subject every time: ich goes with bringe.
3. Using the present for a finished past action
✗ Wrong: “Ich bringe ein Buch für Marie gestern.”
✓ Right: “Ich habe ein Buch für Marie gebracht.”
The time word gestern points to the past, so a finished action needs the Perfekt habe gebracht, not the present.
4. Using the wrong auxiliary in the Perfekt
✗ Wrong: “Ich bin ein Buch für Marie gebracht.”
✓ Right: “Ich habe ein Buch für Marie gebracht.”
The Perfekt of bringen is formed with haben plus the past participle gebracht: the ich form is habe gebracht. Check the auxiliary in the table above before you build a perfect tense.
5. Using the preterite where spoken German prefers the Perfekt
✗ Wrong: “Ich brachte ein Buch für Marie gestern.” (in everyday speech)
✓ Right: “Ich habe ein Buch für Marie gebracht.”
In everyday spoken German the Perfekt habe gebracht is the usual past tense. The preterite brachte is correct in writing and in stories, but it sounds formal in conversation.
6. Using the du form when talking to a group
✗ Wrong: “Bring ein Buch für Marie!” (said to several people)
✓ Right: “Bringt ein Buch für Marie!”
The du imperative bring is for one person you know well. For a group, use the ihr form bringt.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on bringen. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
What is the ich form of bringen in the Present (Präsens)?
- A) bringen
- B) bringe
- C) bringst
- D) bringt
What is the er/sie/es form of bringen in the Preterite (Präteritum)?
- A) brachtest
- B) brachten
- C) brachtet
- D) brachte
What is the er/sie/es form of bringen in the Perfect (Perfekt)?
- A) habe gebracht
- B) hast gebracht
- C) haben gebracht
- D) hat gebracht
What is the du form of bringen in the Future (Futur I)?
- A) wird bringen
- B) werden bringen
- C) wirst bringen
- D) werde bringen
What is the ich form of bringen in the Konjunktiv II (conditional)?
- A) brächte
- B) brächtest
- C) brächten
- D) brächtet
What is the wir form of bringen in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)?
- A) hatten gebracht
- B) hatte gebracht
- C) hattest gebracht
- D) hattet gebracht
What is the er/sie/es form of bringen in the Konjunktiv I?
- A) bringet
- B) bringe
- C) bringest
- D) bringen
What is the du form of bringen in the Imperative (Imperativ)?
- A) bringt
- B) bringst
- C) bring
- D) bringen
What is the past participle of bringen?
- A) gebracht
- B) gearbeitet
- C) gespielt
- D) gehört
What does bringen mean in English?
- A) to work
- B) to play
- C) to hear
- D) to bring
Answer key
- B) bringe — the ich form of bringen in the Present (Präsens) is bringe. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) brachte — the er/sie/es form of bringen in the Preterite (Präteritum) is brachte. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) hat gebracht — the er/sie/es form of bringen in the Perfect (Perfekt) is hat gebracht. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) wirst bringen — the du form of bringen in the Future (Futur I) is wirst bringen. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) brächte — the ich form of bringen in the Konjunktiv II (conditional) is brächte. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) hatten gebracht — the wir form of bringen in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt) is hatten gebracht. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- B) bringe — the er/sie/es form of bringen in the Konjunktiv I is bringe. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) bring — the du form of bringen in the Imperative (Imperativ) is bring. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) gebracht — the past participle of bringen is gebracht; it is used with haben in the perfect tenses. The other options are the participles of neighbouring verbs.
- D) to bring — bringen means “to bring” in English. The other options are the meanings of neighbouring verbs.
Frequently asked questions
What does bringen mean in English?
bringen means “to bring”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is bringen regular or irregular?
bringen is irregular, and it is irregular in these tenses: present, preterite, past-participle, imperative. The present participle is bringend and the past participle is gebracht.
What are the participles of bringen?
The present participle (Partizip I) is bringend — use it as an adjective for an ongoing action. The past participle (Partizip II) is gebracht — use it with haben for the perfect tenses, as in habe gebracht.
Which auxiliary does bringen take in the Perfekt?
bringen takes haben in the Perfekt: the ich form is habe gebracht. All four perfect tenses on this page are built with haben plus the past participle gebracht.
Does German have a separate conditional tense?
No. Konjunktiv II doubles as the conditional: the ich form brächte is the form you use for “would” meanings, and the periphrastic alternative with würde + infinitive is not a separate engine tense. The conditional perfect hätte gebracht covers “would have” meanings.
How do I say “I bring a book for Marie” in German?
Say “Ich bringe ein Buch für Marie.” — “I bring a book for Marie.” The ich form of the present is bringe, and it is the form you will use most often.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of bringen — every tense of bringen in one place.
- Bringen in the Perfekt tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Bringen examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Arbeiten conjugation — another everyday German verb.
- Spielen conjugation — another everyday German verb.
- Hören conjugation — another everyday German verb.
- German irregular verbs — every common irregular German verb, grouped by pattern.
- 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 Conjugator — practise bringen with the interactive tool.
- Conjugation Chart Printer — practise bringen with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise bringen with the interactive tool.