Sich sorgen Present Tense Conjugation in German
The present tense of sich sorgen — “to worry” — is the form you need for habits, facts and what is happening now. This page gives you the complete present tense table for sich sorgen, how it is formed, when to use it, the mistakes learners make with it, and a quiz to check yourself. The first example shows it in action: “Ich sorge mich um meine Kinder.” — “I worry about my children.”
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for sich sorgen, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.
Present Tense conjugation of sich sorgen
Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for sich sorgen. sich sorgen is a regular weak verb, so you can build the present tense from the regular endings once you know the stem.
Present (Präsens) — sich sorgen
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | sorge mich |
| du | sorgst dich |
| er/sie/es | sorgt sich |
| wir | sorgen uns |
| ihr | sorgt euch |
| sie/Sie | sorgen sich |
The present participle of sich sorgen is sorgend and the past participle is gesorgt. You need the participle for the perfect tenses, and the present participle for adjectival use.
How the present tense of sich sorgen is formed
For a regular weak verb, the present tense is built on the stem sich sorg- (the infinitive sich sorgen without its -en ending) plus the present tense endings: ich → sorge mich, du → sorgst dich, er/sie/es → sorgt sich, wir → sorgen uns, ihr → sorgt euch, sie/Sie → sorgen sich. So sich sorgen gives sorge mich, sorgst dich, sorgt sich, sorgen uns, sorgt euch, sorgen sich. sich sorgen is reflexive: the pronoun (mich, dich, sich, uns, euch, sich) goes with the verb — “Ich sorge mich um meine Kinder.”. The tables show the full form with the pronoun.
When to use the present tense of sich sorgen
1. Habits and routines
Use the present tense for habits and routines. For example, with sich sorgen: “Ich sorge mich um meine Kinder.” — “I worry about my children.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
2. General truths and facts
Use the present tense for general truths and facts. For example, with sich sorgen: “Du sorgst dich um meine Kinder.” — “You worry about my children.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
3. What is happening right now
Use the present tense for what is happening right now. For example, with sich sorgen: “Er sorgt sich um meine Kinder.” — “He worries about my children.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
4. Scheduled plans and the near future
Use the present tense for scheduled plans and the near future. For example, with sich sorgen: “Wir sorgen uns um meine Kinder.” — “We worry about my children.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
5. Narration and instructions
Use the present tense for narration and instructions. For example, with sich sorgen: “Sie sorgen sich um meine Kinder.” — “They worry about my children.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.
Present vs future: sich sorgen now, sich sorgen later
The present and the future both talk about things that have not happened yet in one sense, but they are not interchangeable. The present is for what is true now or already fixed; the future is for what will happen and is not yet certain. Compare the pairs below — the present form comes from this page, the future form from the full conjugation table.
Present: “Ich sorge mich um meine Kinder.” — “I worry about my children.”
Future: “Ich werde mich um meine Kinder sorgen.” — “I will worry about my children.”
Present: “Du sorgst dich um meine Kinder.” — “You worry about my children.”
Future: “Du wirst dich um meine Kinder sorgen.” — “You will worry about my children.”
Present: “Wir sorgen uns um meine Kinder.” — “We worry about my children.”
Future: “Wir werden uns um meine Kinder sorgen.” — “We will worry about my children.”
Example sentences: sich sorgen in the present tense
Six sentences using only the present tense of sich sorgen, with English translations. Read them aloud — saying the forms is the fastest way to fix them in memory.
- “Ich sorge mich um meine Kinder.” — “I worry about my children.”
- “Du sorgst dich um meine Kinder.” — “You worry about my children.”
- “Er sorgt sich um meine Kinder.” — “He worries about my children.”
- “Wir sorgen uns um meine Kinder.” — “We worry about my children.”
- “Ihr sorgt euch um meine Kinder.” — “You worry about my children.”
- “Sie sorgen sich um meine Kinder.” — “They worry about my children.”
Common mistakes with sich sorgen in the present tense
1. Using the infinitive instead of the present
✗ Wrong: “Ich sich sorgen um meine Kinder.”
✓ Right: “Ich sorge mich um meine Kinder.”
The infinitive never takes a subject; use the conjugated form sorge mich.
2. Mixing up the persons
✗ Wrong: “Du sorge mich um meine Kinder.”
✓ Right: “Du sorgst dich um meine Kinder.”
After du you need sorgst dich, not the ich form sorge mich. Each person has its own ending.
3. Using the future for a habit
✗ Wrong: “Ich werde mich um meine Kinder sorgen.”
✓ Right: “Ich sorge mich um meine Kinder.”
A habit that happens every day takes the present (sorge mich), not the future.
4. Using the Präteritum for something happening now
✗ Wrong: “Ich sorgte mich um meine Kinder.”
✓ Right: “Ich sorge mich um meine Kinder.”
Something happening right now takes the present (sorge mich), not the Präteritum.
Quiz: sich sorgen in the present tense
What is the ich form of sich sorgen in the Present (Präsens)?
- A) sorge mich
- B) sorgst dich
- C) sorgen sich
- D) sorgt sich
What is the du form of sich sorgen in the Present (Präsens)?
- A) sorgst dich
- B) sorgen uns
- C) sorgt euch
- D) sorge mich
What is the er/sie/es form of sich sorgen in the Present (Präsens)?
- A) sorgen sich
- B) sorgt euch
- C) sorgt sich
- D) sorgst dich
What is the wir form of sich sorgen in the Present (Präsens)?
- A) sorgen uns
- B) sorgt euch
- C) sorgen sich
- D) sorgt sich
What is the ihr form of sich sorgen in the Present (Präsens)?
- A) sorgen uns
- B) sorge mich
- C) sorgt euch
- D) sorgt sich
What is the sie/Sie form of sich sorgen in the Present (Präsens)?
- A) sorgst dich
- B) sorgt euch
- C) sorgen sich
- D) sorgen uns
What is the past participle of sich sorgen?
- A) sorgend
- B) sorge mich
- C) gesorgt
- D) sorgte mich
Which auxiliary does sich sorgen take in the Perfekt?
- A) haben
- B) sein
- C) werden
Answer key
- A) sorge mich — the ich form of sich sorgen in the present tense is sorge mich.
- A) sorgst dich — the du form of sich sorgen in the present tense is sorgst dich.
- C) sorgt sich — the er/sie/es form of sich sorgen in the present tense is sorgt sich.
- A) sorgen uns — the wir form of sich sorgen in the present tense is sorgen uns.
- C) sorgt euch — the ihr form of sich sorgen in the present tense is sorgt euch.
- C) sorgen sich — the sie/Sie form of sich sorgen in the present tense is sorgen sich.
- C) gesorgt — the past participle of sich sorgen is gesorgt; the Perfekt uses haben + gesorgt.
- A) haben — sich sorgen takes haben in the Perfekt: habe mich gesorgt.
Frequently asked questions
How is the present tense of sich sorgen formed?
From the stem plus the present endings: ich → sorge mich, du → sorgst dich, er/sie/es → sorgt sich, wir → sorgen uns, ihr → sorgt euch, sie/Sie → sorgen sich. The German present tense guide explains the pattern for all verbs.
Is sich sorgen regular in the present tense?
Yes — sich sorgen is regular in the present tense: the forms follow the standard pattern. The full picture, including the irregular tenses if any, is on the full conjugation page.
What is the past participle of sich sorgen?
The past participle is gesorgt. Use it with haben for the Perfekt, as in habe mich gesorgt, and with haben in the past for the Plusquamperfekt, as in hatte mich gesorgt.
Related pages
- sich sorgen conjugation — the full conjugation tables for this verb in every tense.
- sich sorgen 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 sich sorgen with the interactive tool.
- Verb Quiz — practise sich sorgen with the interactive tool.
- Reflexive Verb Conjugator — practise reflexive verbs with the interactive tool.
- VerbFlow home — back to the start.