Finden Conjugation in German
finden means “to find” in English, and it is one of the first verbs German learners meet — it sits at number 35 in VerbFlow’s frequency list for German verbs. You will meet it in everyday sentences such as “Ich finde meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer.” — “I find my keys in the living room.” — 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 finden — every tense, every person, the present participle and the past participle — with notes, examples, common mistakes and a quiz.
Quick facts
- Infinitive: finden
- English: to find
- Verb type: Irregular
- Irregular in: present, preterite, past-participle, imperative
- Present participle (Partizip I): findend
- Past participle (Partizip II): gefunden
- Auxiliary: haben (all perfect tenses are formed with haben + the past participle)
- Pattern: strong in the verified tables
Pronunciation
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for finden, 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 finden in every tense, you can recognise it in speech even before you can pronounce every form perfectly.
Three things to remember about finden
- 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 gefunden. 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 findend and gefunden: 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 finden. 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 | finde |
| du | findest |
| er/sie/es | findet |
| wir | finden |
| ihr | findet |
| sie/Sie | finden |
The present (Präsens) is used for habits, facts and things happening now. With finden 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 finde ein gutes Restaurant in Berlin.” — “I find a good restaurant in Berlin.”
Preterite (Präteritum)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | fand |
| du | fandest |
| er/sie/es | fand |
| wir | fanden |
| ihr | fandet |
| sie/Sie | fanden |
The preterite (Präteritum) is used for completed actions in the past, mostly in written German and in stories. With finden 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 fandest ein gutes Restaurant in Berlin.” — “You found a good restaurant in Berlin.”
Perfect (Perfekt)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | habe gefunden |
| du | hast gefunden |
| er/sie/es | hat gefunden |
| wir | haben gefunden |
| ihr | habt gefunden |
| sie/Sie | haben gefunden |
The perfect (Perfekt) is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken German. For example: “Er hat ein gutes Restaurant in Berlin gefunden.” — “He has found a good restaurant in Berlin.”
Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | hatte gefunden |
| du | hattest gefunden |
| er/sie/es | hatte gefunden |
| wir | hatten gefunden |
| ihr | hattet gefunden |
| sie/Sie | hatten gefunden |
The pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt) is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Ich hatte ein gutes Restaurant in Berlin gefunden.” — “I had found a good restaurant in Berlin.”
Future (Futur I)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | werde finden |
| du | wirst finden |
| er/sie/es | wird finden |
| wir | werden finden |
| ihr | werdet finden |
| sie/Sie | werden finden |
The future (Futur I) is used for what will happen, for predictions and for intentions. For example: “Ich werde ein gutes Restaurant in Berlin finden.” — “I will find a good restaurant in Berlin.”
Future perfect (Futur II)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | werde gefunden haben |
| du | wirst gefunden haben |
| er/sie/es | wird gefunden haben |
| wir | werden gefunden haben |
| ihr | werdet gefunden haben |
| sie/Sie | werden gefunden haben |
The future perfect (Futur II) is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Du wirst ein gutes Restaurant in Berlin gefunden haben.” — “You will have found a good restaurant in Berlin.”
Konjunktiv I
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | finde |
| du | findest |
| er/sie/es | finde |
| wir | finden |
| ihr | findet |
| sie/Sie | finden |
Konjunktiv I is used for reported speech — reporting what someone else said — and in formal written German. For example: “Er finde ein gutes Restaurant in Berlin.” — “He finds a good restaurant in Berlin.”
Konjunktiv II (conditional)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | fände |
| du | fändest |
| er/sie/es | fände |
| wir | fänden |
| ihr | fändet |
| sie/Sie | fänden |
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 fände ein gutes Restaurant in Berlin.” — “I would find a good restaurant in Berlin.”
Conditional perfect (Konjunktiv II + participle)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | hätte gefunden |
| du | hättest gefunden |
| er/sie/es | hätte gefunden |
| wir | hätten gefunden |
| ihr | hättet gefunden |
| sie/Sie | hätten gefunden |
The conditional perfect (Konjunktiv II + past participle) is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Er hätte ein gutes Restaurant in Berlin gefunden.” — “He would have found a good restaurant in Berlin.”
Imperative (Imperativ)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| du | finde |
| wir | finden |
| ihr | findet |
| sie/Sie | finden |
The imperative (Imperativ) is used for direct commands, requests and instructions. With finden 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: “Finde ein gutes Restaurant in Berlin!” — “Find a good restaurant in Berlin!”
Present participle (Partizip I)
| Form | German |
|---|---|
| Present participle (Partizip I) | findend |
The present participle (Partizip I) is used as an adjective or adverb, describing an ongoing action. For example, the participle findend 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) | gefunden |
The past participle (Partizip II) is used with an auxiliary to form the perfect tenses, and as an adjective. For example: “Ich habe meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer gefunden.” — “I have found my keys in the living room.”
Infinitive (Infinitiv)
| Form | German |
|---|---|
| Infinitive | finden |
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 finden, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the German and try to produce it from the English.
- “Ich finde meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer.” — “I find my keys in the living room.”
- “Du fandest ein gutes Restaurant in Berlin.” — “You found a good restaurant in Berlin.”
- “Er hat die Antwort im Buch gefunden.” — “He has found the answer in the book.”
- “Ich werde meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer finden.” — “I will find my keys in the living room.”
- “Du fändest ein gutes Restaurant in Berlin.” — “You would find a good restaurant in Berlin.”
- “Ich hatte die Antwort im Buch gefunden.” — “I had found the answer in the book.”
- “Du wirst ein gutes Restaurant in Berlin gefunden haben.” — “You will have found a good restaurant in Berlin.”
- “Er finde die Antwort im Buch.” — “He finds the answer in the book.”
- “Ich hätte meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer gefunden.” — “I would have found my keys in the living room.”
- “Finde meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer!” — “Find my keys in the living room!”
Common mistakes
1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Ich finden meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer.”
✓ Right: “Ich finde meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer.”
The infinitive finden never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated present form finde.
2. Using the wrong person’s form
✗ Wrong: “Ich finden meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer.”
✓ Right: “Ich finde meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer.”
finden is the sie form, not the ich form. Match the verb to the subject every time: ich goes with finde.
3. Using the present for a finished past action
✗ Wrong: “Ich finde meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer gestern.”
✓ Right: “Ich habe meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer gefunden.”
The time word gestern points to the past, so a finished action needs the Perfekt habe gefunden, not the present.
4. Using the wrong auxiliary in the Perfekt
✗ Wrong: “Ich bin meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer gefunden.”
✓ Right: “Ich habe meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer gefunden.”
The Perfekt of finden is formed with haben plus the past participle gefunden: the ich form is habe gefunden. 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 fand meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer gestern.” (in everyday speech)
✓ Right: “Ich habe meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer gefunden.”
In everyday spoken German the Perfekt habe gefunden is the usual past tense. The preterite fand is correct in writing and in stories, but it sounds formal in conversation.
6. Using the du form when talking to a group
✗ Wrong: “Finde meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer!” (said to several people)
✓ Right: “Findet meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer!”
The du imperative finde is for one person you know well. For a group, use the ihr form findet.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on finden. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
What is the ich form of finden in the Present (Präsens)?
- A) findet
- B) finden
- C) finde
- D) findest
What is the er/sie/es form of finden in the Preterite (Präteritum)?
- A) fandest
- B) fanden
- C) fandet
- D) fand
What is the er/sie/es form of finden in the Perfect (Perfekt)?
- A) habe gefunden
- B) hast gefunden
- C) haben gefunden
- D) hat gefunden
What is the du form of finden in the Future (Futur I)?
- A) werde finden
- B) wird finden
- C) werden finden
- D) wirst finden
What is the ich form of finden in the Konjunktiv II (conditional)?
- A) fändest
- B) fänden
- C) fändet
- D) fände
What is the wir form of finden in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)?
- A) hatten gefunden
- B) hatte gefunden
- C) hattest gefunden
- D) hattet gefunden
What is the er/sie/es form of finden in the Konjunktiv I?
- A) finden
- B) findet
- C) finde
- D) findest
What is the du form of finden in the Imperative (Imperativ)?
- A) findet
- B) findest
- C) finde
- D) finden
What is the past participle of finden?
- A) gefunden
- B) gestanden
- C) geblieben
- D) gelegen
What does finden mean in English?
- A) to find
- B) to stand
- C) to stay
- D) to lie
Answer key
- C) finde — the ich form of finden in the Present (Präsens) is finde. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) fand — the er/sie/es form of finden in the Preterite (Präteritum) is fand. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) hat gefunden — the er/sie/es form of finden in the Perfect (Perfekt) is hat gefunden. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) wirst finden — the du form of finden in the Future (Futur I) is wirst finden. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) fände — the ich form of finden in the Konjunktiv II (conditional) is fände. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) hatten gefunden — the wir form of finden in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt) is hatten gefunden. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) finde — the er/sie/es form of finden in the Konjunktiv I is finde. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) finde — the du form of finden in the Imperative (Imperativ) is finde. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) gefunden — the past participle of finden is gefunden; it is used with haben in the perfect tenses. The other options are the participles of neighbouring verbs.
- A) to find — finden means “to find” in English. The other options are the meanings of neighbouring verbs.
Frequently asked questions
What does finden mean in English?
finden means “to find”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is finden regular or irregular?
finden is irregular, and it is irregular in these tenses: present, preterite, past-participle, imperative. The present participle is findend and the past participle is gefunden.
What are the participles of finden?
The present participle (Partizip I) is findend — use it as an adjective for an ongoing action. The past participle (Partizip II) is gefunden — use it with haben for the perfect tenses, as in habe gefunden.
Which auxiliary does finden take in the Perfekt?
finden takes haben in the Perfekt: the ich form is habe gefunden. All four perfect tenses on this page are built with haben plus the past participle gefunden.
Does German have a separate conditional tense?
No. Konjunktiv II doubles as the conditional: the ich form fände 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 gefunden covers “would have” meanings.
How do I say “I find my keys in the living room” in German?
Say “Ich finde meine Schlüssel im Wohnzimmer.” — “I find my keys in the living room.” The ich form of the present is finde, and it is the form you will use most often.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of finden — every tense of finden in one place.
- Finden in the Perfekt tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Finden examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Stehen conjugation — another everyday German verb.
- Bleiben conjugation — another everyday German verb.
- Liegen 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 finden with the interactive tool.
- Conjugation Chart Printer — practise finden with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise finden with the interactive tool.