Servieren Conjugation in German
servieren means “to serve” in English, and it is a verb German learners meet early and use often. This page gives you the complete conjugation of servieren — every tense, every person, the participles and the infinitive — with notes, examples, common mistakes and a quiz. Here is the verb in a natural sentence: “Er serviert das Essen den Gästen.” — “He serves the food to the guests.” Learning the forms on this page first, before you try to use the verb in conversation, saves you from guessing later: German endings change with the person and the tense, and servieren is no exception. Work through the tables one tense at a time, say each form aloud, and then test yourself with the quiz at the end.
Quick facts
- Infinitive: servieren
- English: to serve
- Verb type: Weak verb
- Irregular in: — (regular in every tense)
- Present participle (Partizip I): servierend
- Past participle (Partizip II): serviert
- Auxiliary: haben (all perfect tenses are formed with haben + the past participle)
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for servieren, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Full conjugation tables
Every form below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for servieren. Learn the present tense first, then the Perfekt and the Präteritum, and add the remaining tenses one at a time.
Present (Präsens)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | serviere |
| du | servierst |
| er/sie/es | serviert |
| wir | servieren |
| ihr | serviert |
| sie/Sie | servieren |
Preterite (Präteritum)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | servierte |
| du | serviertest |
| er/sie/es | servierte |
| wir | servierten |
| ihr | serviertet |
| sie/Sie | servierten |
Perfect (Perfekt)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | habe serviert |
| du | hast serviert |
| er/sie/es | hat serviert |
| wir | haben serviert |
| ihr | habt serviert |
| sie/Sie | haben serviert |
Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | hatte serviert |
| du | hattest serviert |
| er/sie/es | hatte serviert |
| wir | hatten serviert |
| ihr | hattet serviert |
| sie/Sie | hatten serviert |
Future (Futur I)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | werde servieren |
| du | wirst servieren |
| er/sie/es | wird servieren |
| wir | werden servieren |
| ihr | werdet servieren |
| sie/Sie | werden servieren |
Future perfect (Futur II)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | werde serviert haben |
| du | wirst serviert haben |
| er/sie/es | wird serviert haben |
| wir | werden serviert haben |
| ihr | werdet serviert haben |
| sie/Sie | werden serviert haben |
Konjunktiv I
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | serviere |
| du | servierest |
| er/sie/es | serviere |
| wir | servieren |
| ihr | serviert |
| sie/Sie | servieren |
Konjunktiv II
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | servierte |
| du | serviertest |
| er/sie/es | servierte |
| wir | servierten |
| ihr | serviertet |
| sie/Sie | servierten |
Conditional perfect
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | hätte serviert |
| du | hättest serviert |
| er/sie/es | hätte serviert |
| wir | hätten serviert |
| ihr | hättet serviert |
| sie/Sie | hätten serviert |
Imperative (Imperativ)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| du | servier |
| wir | servieren |
| ihr | serviert |
| sie/Sie | servieren |
Participles and infinitive
| Form | German |
|---|---|
| Present participle (Partizip I) | servierend |
| Past participle (Partizip II) | serviert |
| Infinitive | servieren |
When to use each tense
Present (Präsens)
The present tense is used for habits, facts and things happening now. For example: “Ich serviere das Essen den Gästen.” — “I serve the food to the guests.”
Preterite (Präteritum)
The preterite is used for completed actions in the past, especially in writing and narration. For example: “Du serviertest das Essen den Gästen.” — “You served the food to the guests.”
Perfect (Perfekt)
The Perfekt is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken German. With servieren it is formed with haben + the past participle serviert. For example: “Er hat das Essen den Gästen serviert.” — “He has served the food to the guests.”
Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)
The Plusquamperfekt is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Wir hatten das Essen den Gästen serviert.” — “We had served the food to the guests.”
Future (Futur I)
The Futur I is used for what will happen, predictions and promises. For example: “Ihr werdet das Essen den Gästen servieren.” — “You will serve the food to the guests.”
Future perfect (Futur II)
The Futur II is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Sie werden das Essen den Gästen serviert haben.” — “They will have served the food to the guests.”
Konjunktiv I
The Konjunktiv I is used for reported speech and indirect quotation. For example: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich das Essen den Gästen serviere.” — “It is important that I serve the food to the guests.”
Konjunktiv II
The Konjunktiv II is used for wishes, polite requests and hypothetical situations — it also doubles as the conditional. There is no separate würde tense in the tables: the Konjunktiv II forms below do the work of the conditional, and würde + infinitive is the periphrastic alternative you will hear in speech. For example: “Du serviertest das Essen den Gästen.” — “You would serve the food to the guests if you could.”
Conditional perfect
The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Er hätte das Essen den Gästen serviert.” — “He would have served the food to the guests if he had been able to.”
Imperative (Imperativ)
The imperative is used for direct commands and instructions. For example: “Servier das Essen den Gästen!” — “Serve the food to the guests!”
Participles and infinitive
The present participle is servierend — “while serving” — used as an adjective or adverb. The past participle is serviert, used with haben for the perfect tenses, as in habe serviert. The infinitive is servieren.
Example sentences
Ten natural sentences with servieren, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the German and try to produce it from the English.
- “Ich serviere das Essen den Gästen.” — “I serve the food to the guests.”
- “Du servierst das Essen den Gästen.” — “You serve the food to the guests.”
- “Er servierte das Essen den Gästen.” — “He served the food to the guests.”
- “Ich habe das Essen den Gästen serviert.” — “I have served the food to the guests.”
- “Er hatte das Essen den Gästen serviert.” — “He had served the food to the guests.”
- “Wir werden das Essen den Gästen servieren.” — “We will serve the food to the guests.”
- “Ich werde das Essen den Gästen serviert haben.” — “I will have served the food to the guests.”
- “Es ist wichtig, dass ich das Essen den Gästen serviere.” — “It is important that I serve the food to the guests.”
- “Ich servierte das Essen den Gästen.” — “I would serve the food to the guests if I could.”
- “Servier das Essen den Gästen!” — “Serve the food to the guests!”
Common mistakes
1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Ich servieren das Essen den Gästen.”
✓ Right: “Ich serviere das Essen den Gästen.”
The infinitive servieren never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated present form serviere.
2. Confusing servieren with bestellen
✗ Wrong: “Ich bestellen das Essen den Gästen.” (using the wrong verb)
✓ Right: “Ich serviere das Essen den Gästen.”
servieren means “to serve”; bestellen means “to order”. Keep the two verbs apart by their meaning, not by their sound.
3. Using the wrong auxiliary for the Perfekt
✗ Wrong: “Ich bin das Essen den Gästen serviert.”
✓ Right: “Ich habe das Essen den Gästen serviert.”
With servieren the Perfekt is formed with haben, not sein: habe serviert.
4. Using the indicative after a Konjunktiv I trigger
✗ Wrong: “Es ist wichtig, dass du das Essen den Gästen servierst.”
✓ Right: “Es ist wichtig, dass du das Essen den Gästen servierest.”
After es ist wichtig, dass German needs Konjunktiv I, so use servierest here, not the indicative servierst.
5. Using the present for a finished past event
✗ Wrong: “Ich serviere das Essen den Gästen.”
✓ Right: “Ich habe das Essen den Gästen serviert.”
Yesterday’s finished event needs the Perfekt (habe serviert), not the present.
Quiz: test yourself
What is the ich form of servieren in the Present (Präsens)?
- A) serviert
- B) serviere
- C) servieren
- D) servierst
What is the er/sie/es form of servieren in the Present (Präsens)?
- A) servierst
- B) serviere
- C) servieren
- D) serviert
What is the ich form of servieren in the Preterite (Präteritum)?
- A) serviertest
- B) servierten
- C) servierte
- D) serviertet
What is the ich form of servieren in the Perfect (Perfekt)?
- A) habe serviert
- B) hat serviert
- C) haben serviert
- D) habt serviert
What is the wir form of servieren in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)?
- A) hatten serviert
- B) hattest serviert
- C) hattet serviert
- D) hatte serviert
What is the du form of servieren in the Future (Futur I)?
- A) wird servieren
- B) werdet servieren
- C) wirst servieren
- D) werden servieren
What is the ich form of servieren in the Future perfect (Futur II)?
- A) wirst serviert haben
- B) werde serviert haben
- C) werdet serviert haben
- D) wird serviert haben
What is the ich form of servieren in the Konjunktiv II?
- A) serviertet
- B) serviertest
- C) servierten
- D) servierte
What is the past participle of servieren?
- A) servierend
- B) serviere
- C) servierte
- D) serviert
What does servieren mean in English?
- A) to order
- B) to come
- C) to serve
- D) to do
Answer key
- B) serviere — the ich form of servieren in the present tense is serviere.
- D) serviert — the er/sie/es form of servieren in the present tense is serviert.
- C) servierte — the ich form of servieren in the preterite is servierte.
- A) habe serviert — the ich form of servieren in the Perfekt is habe serviert.
- A) hatten serviert — the wir form of servieren in the Plusquamperfekt is hatten serviert.
- C) wirst servieren — the du form of servieren in the Futur I is wirst servieren.
- B) werde serviert haben — the ich form of servieren in the Futur II is werde serviert haben.
- D) servierte — the ich form of servieren in the Konjunktiv II is servierte.
- D) serviert — the past participle of servieren is serviert; perfect tenses use haben + serviert.
- C) to serve — servieren means “to serve” in English.
Frequently asked questions
What does servieren mean in English?
servieren means “to serve”. You use it in everyday situations like the examples on this page — for example, “Er serviert das Essen den Gästen.” (“He serves the food to the guests.”). It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is servieren regular or irregular?
servieren is regular: its endings follow the standard weak pattern in every tense. The present participle is servierend and the past participle is serviert.
What are the participles of servieren?
The present participle is servierend and the past participle is serviert — use it with haben for the perfect tenses, as in habe serviert.
What is the difference between servieren and bestellen?
servieren means “to serve”, while bestellen means “to order”. They are easy to mix up because they appear in similar situations, but their meanings are different. If you are unsure, check the full conjugation page for bestellen and compare the meanings in context.
How do I say “I serve” in German?
Say “Er serviert das Essen den Gästen.” — “He serves the food to the guests.” The ich form of the present is serviere, and it is the form you will use most often.
How to learn servieren
Start with the present tense: serviere, servierst, serviert, servieren, serviert, servieren. Say them in order every day for a week, then add the Perfekt — habe serviert — and the Präteritum — servierte. Next, learn the future (werde servieren) and the Konjunktiv II (servierte), which also does the work of the conditional. Finally, tackle Konjunktiv I (serviere) and the imperative (servier). Write one sentence of your own in each tense, using the examples above as models, and check every form against the tables. When you can produce all six persons of the present without looking, move on to the quiz.
Related pages
- servieren in the present tense — the full table and uses for this verb in the present tense.
- servieren examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- German verbs — the full hub of German conjugation pages.
- German present tense guide — how this tense works for regular verbs.
- Einladen conjugation — another German verb to practise with.
- Treffen conjugation — another German verb to practise with.
- Spanish verbs — the full hub of Spanish conjugation pages.
- French verbs — the full hub of French conjugation pages.
- Verb Conjugator — practise servieren with the interactive tool.
- Verb Quiz — practise servieren with the interactive tool.
- Present Tense Conjugator — practise the present tense with the interactive tool.
- VerbFlow home — back to the start.