Erinnern in the Present Tense in German

Introduction

Erinnern means “to remember”, and this page covers exactly one thing: erinnern in the present tense. The present is the tense German speakers reach for when they talk about what happens regularly, what is true in general, and what is happening right now. On this page you will find the full present table for erinnern, how the tense is formed for this verb, the situations where it is used, how it differs from the preterite, worked examples, the mistakes learners make most often, an eight-question quiz with explained answers, and answers to the questions students ask about erinnern in the present. For example: “Ich erinnere meinen Freund an den Termin jeden Tag.” — “I remember my friend of the appointment every day.” Everything on this page uses the forms of erinnern exactly as they are conjugated in the present, so you can trust every form you see here.

Erinnern in the Present Tense — full table

Person Form
ich erinnere
du erinnerst
er/sie/es erinnert
wir erinnern
ihr erinnert
sie/Sie erinnern

Partizip I: erinnernd · Partizip II: geerinnert

The present participle is erinnernd, which you use as an adjective. The past participle is geerinnert, which you use with haben in the perfect tenses: the ich form of the Perfekt is habe geerinnert, used for a completed action. Keep both forms in mind as you read the examples below, because the Präsens is only one part of how erinnern is used.

How the Präsens of erinnern is formed

The present of erinnern follows the regular weak pattern: take the stem and add the present endings, giving ich erinnere, du erinnerst, er/sie/es erinnert, wir erinnern, ihr erinnert, sie/Sie erinnern. The wir and ihr forms are the ones learners most often get wrong, because they expect a change that is not there — learn the six forms as two groups, the singular forms and the plural forms, and the pattern becomes automatic. The stem never changes in the present for this verb, so the only work is the endings.

The present stem also feeds other tenses: the preterite and Konjunktiv II are built from the same family of forms, so learning the present properly makes the rest of the conjugation easier. Partizip I erinnernd and Partizip II geerinnert belong to the same family — learn them together with the present table and you will recognise erinnern in every tense.

When to use the Präsens of erinnern

The present is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use erinnern in the present most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.

1. Remembering my friend of the appointment — the everyday use

Erinnern is the verb for remembering my friend of the appointment. It covers the ordinary, everyday situations where this verb appears, at home and outside. Example: “Ich erinnere meinen Freund an den Termin jeden Tag.” — “I remember my friend of the appointment every day.”

2. Remembering my sister of the party — a second everyday use

Erinnern also covers remembering my sister of the party. This use is very common in everyday speech, and it is the one learners meet next after the first. Example: “Du erinnerst meine Schwester an die Party jeden Tag.” — “You remember my sister of the party every day.”

3. Remembering my brother of the meeting — a third everyday use

In a third everyday situation, you use erinnern for remembering my brother of the meeting. The same verb, the same present forms, a different situation — that is why the present is worth learning as a whole table rather than one form at a time. Example: “Er erinnert meinen Bruder an das Treffen jeden Tag.” — “He remembers my brother of the meeting every day.”

4. Habits and routines

The present tense is the tense of routine. When something happens every day, every week or every morning, the present is the natural choice, and erinnern is no exception. Use time expressions such as jeden Tag, immer or jede Woche to make the routine explicit. Example: “Wir erinnern meinen Freund an den Termin jeden Tag.” — “We remember my friend of the appointment every day.”

5. What is happening right now

The present also describes an action in progress at this very moment. German often prefers the simple present where English would use the continuous form, so a sentence with erinnern in the present can mean both “I do this” and “I am doing this now”. Context tells the listener which one you mean. Example: “Ihr erinnert meine Schwester an die Party jeden Tag.” — “You remember my sister of the party every day.”

Present Tense vs Preterite: how to choose

The closest tense to the Präsens is the preterite, and learners mix them up constantly. The rule is simple: the preterite describes a completed past action, mostly in writing and stories, while the present describes habits and facts that are true now. The three pairs below use the same verb, so the only thing that changes is the time frame — and with it, the tense. Notice how the Präsens sentences use words such as jeden Tag or gestern, while the preterite sentences belong to a story told in the past. Those time words are your best clue when you are choosing a tense.

  • Present: “Ich erinnere meinen Freund an den Termin jeden Tag.” — “I remember my friend of the appointment every day.”

  • Preterite (Präteritum): “Ich erinnerte meinen Freund an den Termin gestern.” — “I remembered my friend of the appointment yesterday.”

  • The Präsens sentence is about the present moment or one finished action in speech; the preterite sentence is about the past as it is told in writing. That difference — now or finished in speech versus told in a story — is the whole decision.

  • Present: “Du erinnerst meine Schwester an die Party jeden Tag.” — “You remember my sister of the party every day.”

  • Preterite (Präteritum): “Du erinnertest meine Schwester an die Party gestern.” — “You remembered my sister of the party yesterday.”

  • The Präsens sentence is about the present moment or one finished action in speech; the preterite sentence is about the past as it is told in writing. That difference — now or finished in speech versus told in a story — is the whole decision.

  • Present: “Wir erinnern meinen Bruder an das Treffen jeden Tag.” — “We remember my brother of the meeting every day.”

  • Preterite (Präteritum): “Wir erinnerten meinen Bruder an das Treffen gestern.” — “We remembered my brother of the meeting yesterday.”

  • The Präsens sentence is about the present moment or one finished action in speech; the preterite sentence is about the past as it is told in writing. That difference — now or finished in speech versus told in a story — is the whole decision.

Example sentences: erinnern in the Präsens

Read these eight sentences out loud. They cover all six persons, so by the end you will have seen every form in the table used in a real sentence. Pay attention to the words around the verb — the time expressions, the objects, the other words — because those are what make each sentence sound natural.

  1. “Ich erinnere meine Schwester an die Party jeden Tag.” — “I remember my sister of the party every day.”

  2. “Du erinnerst meinen Bruder an das Treffen jeden Tag.” — “You remember my brother of the meeting every day.”

  3. “Er erinnert meinen Freund an den Termin jeden Tag.” — “He remembers my friend of the appointment every day.”

  4. “Wir erinnern meine Schwester an die Party jeden Tag.” — “We remember my sister of the party every day.”

  5. “Ihr erinnert meinen Bruder an das Treffen jeden Tag.” — “You remember my brother of the meeting every day.”

  6. “Sie erinnern meinen Freund an den Termin jeden Tag.” — “They remember my friend of the appointment every day.”

  7. “Ich erinnere meine Schwester an die Party jeden Tag.” — “I remember my sister of the party every day.”

  8. “Du erinnerst meinen Bruder an das Treffen jeden Tag.” — “You remember my brother of the meeting every day.”

Common mistakes with erinnern in the Präsens

These are the errors learners actually make with this verb in this tense. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.

  • Wrong: “Ich erinnern meinen Freund an den Termin.” Right: “Ich erinnere meinen Freund an den Termin.” Why: The ich form is erinnere, not erinnern. Erinnern belongs with sie. Mixing the two groups is the most common error with this verb.

  • Wrong: “Wir erinnern meinen Freund an den Termin.” Right: “Wir erinnern meinen Freund an den Termin.” Why: Wir keeps its own form: erinnern, not erinnern. Learn wir and ihr as a separate pair from the singular forms.

  • Wrong: “Ich erinnern meinen Freund an den Termin.” (with the infinitive) Right: “Ich erinnere meinen Freund an den Termin.” Why: The infinitive erinnern never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated present form erinnere.

  • Wrong: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich erinnere meinen Freund an den Termin.” Right: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich erinnere meinen Freund an den Termin.” Why: After es ist wichtig, dass German needs Konjunktiv I, so use erinnere here, not the indicative erinnere.

Quiz: erinnern in the Präsens

Choose the correct answer for each question, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained, so a wrong answer still teaches you something.

1. Complete the sentence: “Ich ______ meine Schwester an die Party.”

  • (A) erinnere
  • (B) erinnerst
  • (C) erinnert
  • (D) erinnern

2. Complete the sentence: “Du ______ meinen Bruder an das Treffen.”

  • (A) erinnert
  • (B) erinnern
  • (C) erinnerst
  • (D) erinnere

3. Complete the sentence: “Er ______ meinen Freund an den Termin.”

  • (A) erinnern
  • (B) erinnert
  • (C) erinnere
  • (D) erinnerst

4. Complete the sentence: “Wir ______ meine Schwester an die Party.”

  • (A) erinnere
  • (B) erinnerst
  • (C) erinnert
  • (D) erinnern

5. Complete the sentence: “Ihr ______ meinen Bruder an das Treffen.”

  • (A) erinnern
  • (B) erinnert
  • (C) erinnere
  • (D) erinnerst

6. Complete the sentence: “Sie ______ meinen Freund an den Termin.”

  • (A) erinnere
  • (B) erinnerst
  • (C) erinnert
  • (D) erinnern

7. What does erinnern mean in English?

  • (A) to wish
  • (B) to fear
  • (C) to remember
  • (D) to hope

8. What is the past participle (Partizip II) of erinnern?

  • (A) gefürchtet
  • (B) geerinnert
  • (C) gehofft
  • (D) gewünscht

Answer key

  1. A) erinnere — The ich form is erinnere.
  2. C) erinnerst — The du form is erinnerst.
  3. B) erinnert — The er/sie/es form is erinnert.
  4. D) erinnern — The wir form is erinnern.
  5. B) erinnert — The ihr form is erinnert.
  6. D) erinnern — The sie/Sie form is erinnern.
  7. C) to remember — erinnern means “to remember”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
  8. B) geerinnert — The past participle of erinnern is geerinnert; the Präsens is formed with haben + geerinnert.

Frequently asked questions

How is the present of erinnern formed?

The present of erinnern is regular: take the stem and add the present endings, giving ich erinnere, du erinnerst, er erinnert, wir erinnern, ihr erinnert, sie erinnern.

When do I use the present of erinnern?

Use the present for habits, general truths and what is happening now — for example, “Ich erinnere meinen Freund an den Termin jeden Tag.” — “I remember my friend of the appointment every day.” For a finished past action, use the Perfekt instead.

What is the difference between the present and the preterite of erinnern?

The present describes what is true now or happens regularly; the preterite describes a completed past action, mostly in writing. Compare “Ich erinnere meinen Freund an den Termin jeden Tag.” with “Ich erinnerte meinen Freund an den Termin gestern.” — the first is now, the second is the past as it is told in a story.

Pronunciation

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

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