Schwimmen in the Perfekt Tense in German
Introduction
Schwimmen means “to swim”, and this page covers exactly one thing: schwimmen in the Perfekt. The Perfekt is the tense German speakers reach for in everyday speech when they talk about completed actions in the past — what happened yesterday, last week, or a moment ago. On this page you will find the full Perfekt table for schwimmen, 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 schwimmen in the Perfekt. For example: “Ich bin im See geschwommen gestern.” — “I have swum in the lake yesterday.” Everything on this page uses the forms of schwimmen exactly as they are conjugated in the Perfekt, so you can trust every form you see here.
Schwimmen in the Perfekt Tense — full table
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | bin geschwommen |
| du | bist geschwommen |
| er/sie/es | ist geschwommen |
| wir | sind geschwommen |
| ihr | seid geschwommen |
| sie/Sie | sind geschwommen |
Partizip I: schwimmend · Partizip II: geschwommen
The present participle is schwimmend, which you use as an adjective. The past participle is geschwommen, which you use with sein in the perfect tenses: the ich form of the Perfekt is bin geschwommen, used for a completed action. Keep both forms in mind as you read the examples below, because the Perfekt is only one part of how schwimmen is used.
How the Perfekt of schwimmen is formed
The Perfekt of schwimmen is formed with the auxiliary sein in the present plus the past participle geschwommen: the auxiliary forms are ich bin, du bist, er/sie/es ist, wir sind, ihr seid, sie/Sie sind. Put the two parts together and you get the table above — for example, the ich form is bin geschwommen and the sie form is sind geschwommen. The participle geschwommen never changes its spelling in this table: the verified dump gives the participle in the uninflected form throughout, and agreement with the subject is a separate step that depends on the sentence.
Because schwimmen takes sein as its auxiliary, it belongs to the group of verbs of movement and change of state that form their perfect tenses with sein. That is the first thing to check whenever you build a perfect tense with this verb: reach for sein, not haben, and then add geschwommen.
The same participle geschwommen appears in the pluperfect, the future perfect and the conditional perfect — only the auxiliary changes tense. Learn the pair “sein + geschwommen” once and you have the key to all four perfect tenses of schwimmen.
When to use the Perfekt of schwimmen
The Perfekt is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use schwimmen in the Perfekt most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.
1. Swimming in the lake — finished
When the action of swimming in the lake is finished, the Perfekt is the tense to use. It presents the action as complete, with a clear end. Example: “Ich bin im See geschwommen gestern.” — “I have swum in the lake yesterday.”
2. Swimming in the sea — finished
The same rule applies to swimming in the sea: once the action is done, the Perfekt reports it as a completed fact. Example: “Du bist im Meer geschwommen gestern.” — “You have swum in the sea yesterday.”
3. Swimming in the swimming pool — finished
A third everyday situation is swimming in the swimming pool, and again the Perfekt is right when the action is finished. Example: “Er ist im Schwimmbad geschwommen gestern.” — “He has swum in the swimming pool yesterday.”
4. A sequence of completed actions
The Perfekt is the tense of the story told step by step: first this happened, then that happened. When you tell someone what you did yesterday, you chain Perfekt forms together, one per finished action. Example: “Wir sind im See geschwommen gestern.” — “We have swum in the lake yesterday.”
5. Recent past and life experience
The Perfekt also covers the recent past and things that have happened at some point in your life. With time words such as gestern, letzte Woche or heute Morgen, the Perfekt is the natural choice. Example: “Ihr seid im Meer geschwommen gestern.” — “You have swum in the sea yesterday.”
Perfekt vs Preterite: how to choose
The closest tense to the Perfekt 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 Perfekt describes one finished action in everyday speech. 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 Perfekt 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.
Perfekt: “Ich bin im See geschwommen gestern.” — “I have swum in the lake yesterday.”
Preterite (Präteritum): “Ich schwamm im See gestern.” — “I swam in the lake yesterday.”
The Perfekt 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.
Perfekt: “Du bist im Meer geschwommen gestern.” — “You have swum in the sea yesterday.”
Preterite (Präteritum): “Du schwammst im Meer gestern.” — “You swam in the sea yesterday.”
The Perfekt 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.
Perfekt: “Wir sind im Schwimmbad geschwommen gestern.” — “We have swum in the swimming pool yesterday.”
Preterite (Präteritum): “Wir schwammen im Schwimmbad gestern.” — “We swam in the swimming pool yesterday.”
The Perfekt 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: schwimmen in the Perfekt
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.
“Ich bin im Meer geschwommen gestern.” — “I have swum in the sea yesterday.”
“Du bist im Schwimmbad geschwommen gestern.” — “You have swum in the swimming pool yesterday.”
“Er ist im See geschwommen gestern.” — “He has swum in the lake yesterday.”
“Wir sind im Meer geschwommen gestern.” — “We have swum in the sea yesterday.”
“Ihr seid im Schwimmbad geschwommen gestern.” — “You have swum in the swimming pool yesterday.”
“Sie sind im See geschwommen gestern.” — “They have swum in the lake yesterday.”
“Ich bin im Meer geschwommen gestern.” — “I have swum in the sea yesterday.”
“Du bist im Schwimmbad geschwommen gestern.” — “You have swum in the swimming pool yesterday.”
Common mistakes with schwimmen in the Perfekt
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 schwimme im See gestern.” Right: “Ich bin im See geschwommen gestern.” Why: For one finished action yesterday, use the Perfekt bin geschwommen, not the present schwimme. The time word gestern points to the past.
Wrong: “Ich bin im See geschwommen jeden Tag.” (said of a daily habit) Right: “Ich schwimme im See jeden Tag.” Why: The Perfekt bin geschwommen describes one finished action. For something you do every day, use the present schwimme.
Wrong: “Ich im See geschwommen.” — leaving out the auxiliary Right: “Ich bin im See geschwommen.” Why: The Perfekt needs both parts: the auxiliary sein and the participle geschwommen. The participle alone is not a complete Perfekt.
Wrong: “Ich schwamm im See gestern.” (in everyday speech) Right: “Ich bin im See geschwommen gestern.” Why: The preterite schwamm is mostly a written tense. In everyday speech, a finished action yesterday takes the Perfekt bin geschwommen.
Quiz: schwimmen in the Perfekt
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 ______ im Meer.”
- (A) ist geschwommen
- (B) sind geschwommen
- (C) bin geschwommen
- (D) bist geschwommen
2. Complete the sentence: “Du ______ im Schwimmbad.”
- (A) sind geschwommen
- (B) bist geschwommen
- (C) bin geschwommen
- (D) ist geschwommen
3. Complete the sentence: “Er ______ im See.”
- (A) bin geschwommen
- (B) bist geschwommen
- (C) sind geschwommen
- (D) ist geschwommen
4. Complete the sentence: “Wir ______ im Meer.”
- (A) ist geschwommen
- (B) sind geschwommen
- (C) bin geschwommen
- (D) bist geschwommen
5. Complete the sentence: “Ihr ______ im Schwimmbad.”
- (A) bist geschwommen
- (B) ist geschwommen
- (C) seid geschwommen
- (D) bin geschwommen
6. Complete the sentence: “Sie ______ im See.”
- (A) ist geschwommen
- (B) sind geschwommen
- (C) bin geschwommen
- (D) bist geschwommen
7. What does schwimmen mean in English?
- (A) to sing
- (B) to swim
- (C) to fly
- (D) to dance
8. What is the past participle (Partizip II) of schwimmen?
- (A) geflogen
- (B) getanzt
- (C) gesungen
- (D) geschwommen
Answer key
- C) bin geschwommen — The ich form is bin geschwommen.
- B) bist geschwommen — The du form is bist geschwommen.
- D) ist geschwommen — The er/sie/es form is ist geschwommen.
- B) sind geschwommen — The wir form is sind geschwommen.
- C) seid geschwommen — The ihr form is seid geschwommen.
- B) sind geschwommen — The sie/Sie form is sind geschwommen.
- B) to swim — schwimmen means “to swim”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
- D) geschwommen — The past participle of schwimmen is geschwommen; the Perfekt is formed with sein + geschwommen.
Frequently asked questions
How is the Perfekt of schwimmen formed?
With the auxiliary sein in the present plus the past participle geschwommen: ich bin geschwommen, du bist geschwommen, er ist geschwommen, wir sind geschwommen, ihr seid geschwommen, sie sind geschwommen.
When do I use the Perfekt of schwimmen?
Use the Perfekt for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken German — for example, “Ich bin im See geschwommen gestern.” — “I have swum in the lake yesterday.” For an ongoing or habitual past action, use the preterite in writing instead.
What is the difference between the Perfekt and the preterite of schwimmen?
The Perfekt reports one finished action in everyday speech; the preterite reports a completed past action in writing and stories. Compare “Ich bin im See geschwommen gestern.” with “Ich schwamm im See gestern.” — the first is spoken, the second is written.
Pronunciation
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for schwimmen, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of schwimmen — every tense of schwimmen in one place.
- Schwimmen in the Perfekt tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Schwimmen examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Fliegen conjugation — another everyday German verb.
- Tanzen conjugation — another everyday German verb.
- Singen 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.
- Perfect Tenses Builder — practise schwimmen with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise schwimmen with the interactive tool.
- Spanish Verb Quiz — practise schwimmen with the interactive tool.