Duschen Conjugation in German

duschen means “to shower” in English, and it is one of the first verbs German learners meet — it sits at number 81 in VerbFlow’s frequency list for German verbs. You use it whenever you talk about showering in the morning, 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 duschen — every tense, every person, both participles and the infinitive — with notes, examples, common mistakes and a quiz. Here is the verb in a natural sentence: “Ich dusche am Morgen jeden Tag.” — “I shower in the morning every day.”

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: duschen
  • English: to shower
  • Verb type: Regular
  • Irregular in: none — regular in every tense
  • Pattern: weak
  • Separable: no
  • Participle I: duschend
  • Past participle (Partizip II): geduscht
  • Auxiliary: haben (all perfect tenses are formed with haben + the past participle)

Pronunciation

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for duschen, 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 duschen in every tense, you can recognise it in speech even before you can pronounce every form perfectly.

Three things to remember about duschen

  1. It is regular: every form follows the ordinary weak pattern, so once you know the stem you can build the whole table. The only work is learning the endings, not memorising exceptions.
  2. The perfect tenses use haben: the perfect is formed with haben in the present plus the past participle geduscht. The tables on this page give the participle in the uninflected form, exactly as it appears in the verified dump; agreement with the subject is a separate step that depends on the sentence, not on the verb table.
  3. Partizip I is duschend and Partizip II is geduscht: keep both in mind as you read the tables, because Partizip I appears in adjectival uses and Partizip II 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 duschen. 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 dusche
du duschst
er/sie/es duscht
wir duschen
ihr duscht
sie/Sie duschen

The present (Präsens) is used for habits, facts and things happening now. For example: “Ich dusche nach dem Sport jeden Tag.” — “I shower after sport every day.”

Preterite (Präteritum)

Person Form
ich duschte
du duschtest
er/sie/es duschte
wir duschten
ihr duschtet
sie/Sie duschten

The preterite (Präteritum) is used for completed actions in the past, mostly in written German and in stories. For example: “Du duschtest nach dem Sport gestern.” — “You showered after sport yesterday.”

Perfect (Perfekt)

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

The perfect (Perfekt) is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken German. For example: “Er hat nach dem Sport geduscht gestern.” — “He has showered after sport yesterday.”

Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)

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

The pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt) is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Wir hatten nach dem Sport geduscht vor der Party.” — “We had showered after sport before the party.”

Future (Futur I)

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

The future (Futur I) is used for what will happen, for predictions and for probability. For example: “Ich werde nach dem Sport duschen morgen.” — “I will shower after sport tomorrow.”

Future perfect (Futur II)

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

The future perfect (Futur II) is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Du wirst nach dem Sport geduscht haben bis morgen.” — “You will have showered after sport by tomorrow.”

Konjunktiv I

Person Form
ich dusche
du duschest
er/sie/es dusche
wir duschen
ihr duschet
sie/Sie duschen

Konjunktiv I is used for reported speech and indirect quotation. For example: “Es ist wichtig, dass er dusche nach dem Sport.” — “It is important that he shower after sport.”

Konjunktiv II

Person Form
ich duschte
du duschtest
er/sie/es duschte
wir duschten
ihr duschtet
sie/Sie duschten

Konjunktiv II is used for wishes, hypothetical situations and polite requests. It doubles as the conditional: there is no separate würde tense in the tables, and the periphrastic alternative with würde plus the infinitive is a way of expressing the same meaning, not a tense of its own. For example: “Ich duschte nach dem Sport eines Tages.” — “I would shower after sport one day.”

Conditional perfect

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

The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Er hätte nach dem Sport geduscht gestern.” — “He would have showered after sport yesterday.”

Imperative

Person Form
du dusch
wir duschen
ihr duscht
sie duschen

The imperative is used for direct commands and instructions. For example: “Dusch nach dem Sport!” — “Shower after sport!”

Present participle (Partizip I)

Form German
Present participle duschend

The present participle (Partizip I) is used as an adjective and for describing an action in progress. For example, the participle duschend describes something that is showering. The present-tense sentence “Ich dusche am Morgen jeden Tag.” — “I shower in the morning every day.” shows the same verb in action.

Past participle (Partizip II)

Form German
Past participle geduscht

The past participle (Partizip II) is used with an auxiliary to form the perfect tenses, and as an adjective. For example: “Ich habe am Morgen geduscht gestern.” — “I have showered in the morning yesterday.”

Infinitive

Form German
Infinitive duschen

The infinitive is the dictionary form of the verb, used after modal verbs and in infinitive constructions. The infinitive duschen is the form you look up in a dictionary. In a sentence it appears after a modal verb or with zu, and in the future it follows werden, as in “Ich werde am Morgen duschen morgen.” — “I will shower in the morning tomorrow.”

Example sentences

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

  1. “Ich dusche am Morgen jeden Tag.” — “I shower in the morning every day.”
  2. “Du duschtest nach dem Sport gestern.” — “You showered after sport yesterday.”
  3. “Er hat vor der Arbeit geduscht gestern.” — “He has showered before work yesterday.”
  4. “Wir hatten am Morgen geduscht vor der Party.” — “We had showered in the morning before the party.”
  5. “Ich werde nach dem Sport duschen morgen.” — “I will shower after sport tomorrow.”
  6. “Du wirst vor der Arbeit geduscht haben bis morgen.” — “You will have showered before work by tomorrow.”
  7. “Es ist wichtig, dass er dusche am Morgen.” — “It is important that he shower in the morning.”
  8. “Ich duschte nach dem Sport eines Tages.” — “I would shower after sport one day.”
  9. “Er hätte vor der Arbeit geduscht gestern.” — “He would have showered before work yesterday.”
  10. “Dusch am Morgen!” — “Shower in the morning!”

Common mistakes

1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Ich duschen am Morgen.”

✓ Right: “Ich dusche am Morgen.”

The infinitive duschen never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated present form dusche.

2. Using the wrong person’s form

✗ Wrong: “Ich duschen am Morgen.”

✓ Right: “Ich dusche am Morgen.”

duschen is the sie form, not the ich form. Match the verb to the subject every time: ich goes with dusche.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Ich dusche am Morgen gestern.”

✓ Right: “Ich habe am Morgen geduscht gestern.”

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

4. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger

✗ Wrong: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich dusche am Morgen.”

✓ Right: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich dusche am Morgen.”

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

5. Using the wrong auxiliary in the Perfekt

✗ Wrong: “Ich bin geduscht am Morgen.”

✓ Right: “habe geduscht am Morgen.”

The Perfekt of duschen is formed with haben plus the past participle geduscht: the ich form is habe geduscht. Check the auxiliary in the table above before you build a perfect tense.

6. Using the preterite for a daily habit

✗ Wrong: “Ich duschte am Morgen jeden Tag.”

✓ Right: “Ich dusche am Morgen jeden Tag.”

The preterite duschte describes a past action. For something you do every day, use the present dusche.

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) dusche
    • B) duschst
    • C) duscht
    • D) duschen

  2. What is the du form of duschen in the Preterite (Präteritum)?

    • A) duschtet
    • B) duschtest
    • C) duschte
    • D) duschten

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

    • A) hat geduscht
    • B) habe geduscht
    • C) hast geduscht
    • D) haben geduscht

  4. What is the wir form of duschen in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)?

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

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

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

  6. What is the ich form of duschen in the Future perfect (Futur II)?

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

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

    • A) dusche
    • B) duschest
    • C) duschen
    • D) duschet

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

    • A) duschte
    • B) duschtest
    • C) duschten
    • D) duschtet

  9. What is the present participle (Partizip I) of duschen?

    • A) anziehend
    • B) ausziehend
    • C) duschend
    • D) badend

  10. What does duschen mean in English?

  • A) to take off
  • B) to shower
  • C) to bathe
  • D) to put on

Answer key

  1. A) dusche — the ich form of duschen in the Present (Präsens) is dusche. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. B) duschtest — the du form of duschen in the Preterite (Präteritum) is duschtest. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. A) hat geduscht — the er/sie/es form of duschen in the Perfect (Perfekt) is hat geduscht. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. B) hatten geduscht — the wir form of duschen in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt) is hatten geduscht. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) wirst duschen — the du form of duschen in the Future (Futur I) is wirst duschen. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. A) werde geduscht haben — the ich form of duschen in the Future perfect (Futur II) is werde geduscht haben. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. A) dusche — the er/sie/es form of duschen in the Konjunktiv I is dusche. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) duschte — the ich form of duschen in the Konjunktiv II is duschte. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. C) duschend — the present participle (Partizip I) of duschen is duschend. The other options are the participles of neighbouring verbs.
  10. B) to shower — duschen means “to shower” in English. The other options are the meanings of neighbouring verbs.

Frequently asked questions

What does duschen mean in English?

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

Is duschen regular or irregular?

duschen is regular: it follows the ordinary weak pattern in every tense. Partizip I is duschend and Partizip II is geduscht.

What are the participles of duschen?

Partizip I is duschend — use it as an adjective. Partizip II is geduscht — use it with haben for the perfect tenses, as in habe geduscht.

Which auxiliary does duschen take in the Perfekt?

duschen takes haben in the Perfekt: the ich form is habe geduscht. All four perfect tenses on this page are built with haben plus the past participle geduscht.

How do I say “I shower” in German?

Say “Ich dusche am Morgen jeden Tag.” — “I shower in the morning every day.” The ich form of the present is dusche, and it is the form you will use most often.

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