Springen Conjugation in German

springen means “to jump” in English, and it is one of the first verbs German learners meet — it sits at number 92 in VerbFlow’s frequency list for German verbs. You use it whenever you talk about jumping over the fence, 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 springen — every tense, every person, both participles and the infinitive — with notes, examples, common mistakes and a quiz. Here is the verb in a natural sentence: “Ich springe über den Zaun jeden Tag.” — “I jump over the fence every day.”

Quick facts

  • Infinitive: springen
  • English: to jump
  • Verb type: Irregular
  • Irregular in: present, preterite, past-participle, imperative
  • Pattern: strong
  • Separable: no
  • Participle I: springend
  • Past participle (Partizip II): gesprungen
  • Auxiliary: sein (all perfect tenses are formed with sein + the past participle)

Pronunciation

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for springen, 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 springen in every tense, you can recognise it in speech even before you can pronounce every form perfectly.

Three things to remember about springen

  1. 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.
  2. The perfect tenses use sein: the perfect is formed with sein in the present plus the past participle gesprungen. The tables on this page give the participle in the uninflected form, exactly as it appears in the verified dump; agreement with the subject is a separate step that depends on the sentence, not on the verb table.
  3. Partizip I is springend and Partizip II is gesprungen: keep both in mind as you read the tables, because Partizip I appears in adjectival uses and Partizip II 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 springen. 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 springe
du springst
er/sie/es springt
wir springen
ihr springt
sie/Sie springen

The present (Präsens) is used for habits, facts and things happening now. With springen 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 springe ins Wasser jeden Tag.” — “I jump into the water every day.”

Preterite (Präteritum)

Person Form
ich sprang
du sprangst
er/sie/es sprang
wir sprangen
ihr sprangt
sie/Sie sprangen

The preterite (Präteritum) is used for completed actions in the past, mostly in written German and in stories. With springen 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 sprangst ins Wasser gestern.” — “You jumped into the water yesterday.”

Perfect (Perfekt)

Person Form
ich bin gesprungen
du bist gesprungen
er/sie/es ist gesprungen
wir sind gesprungen
ihr seid gesprungen
sie/Sie sind gesprungen

The perfect (Perfekt) is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken German. For example: “Er ist ins Wasser gesprungen gestern.” — “He has jumped into the water yesterday.”

Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)

Person Form
ich war gesprungen
du warst gesprungen
er/sie/es war gesprungen
wir waren gesprungen
ihr wart gesprungen
sie/Sie waren gesprungen

The pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt) is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Wir waren ins Wasser gesprungen vor der Party.” — “We had jumped into the water before the party.”

Future (Futur I)

Person Form
ich werde springen
du wirst springen
er/sie/es wird springen
wir werden springen
ihr werdet springen
sie/Sie werden springen

The future (Futur I) is used for what will happen, for predictions and for probability. For example: “Ich werde ins Wasser springen morgen.” — “I will jump into the water tomorrow.”

Future perfect (Futur II)

Person Form
ich werde gesprungen sein
du wirst gesprungen sein
er/sie/es wird gesprungen sein
wir werden gesprungen sein
ihr werdet gesprungen sein
sie/Sie werden gesprungen sein

The future perfect (Futur II) is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Du wirst ins Wasser gesprungen sein bis morgen.” — “You will have jumped into the water by tomorrow.”

Konjunktiv I

Person Form
ich springe
du springest
er/sie/es springe
wir springen
ihr springet
sie/Sie springen

Konjunktiv I is used for reported speech and indirect quotation. For example: “Es ist wichtig, dass er springe ins Wasser.” — “It is important that he jump into the water.”

Konjunktiv II

Person Form
ich spränge
du sprängest
er/sie/es spränge
wir sprängen
ihr spränget
sie/Sie sprängen

Konjunktiv II is used for wishes, hypothetical situations and polite requests. It doubles as the conditional: there is no separate würde tense in the tables, and the periphrastic alternative with würde plus the infinitive is a way of expressing the same meaning, not a tense of its own. For example: “Ich spränge ins Wasser eines Tages.” — “I would jump into the water one day.”

Conditional perfect

Person Form
ich wäre gesprungen
du wärst gesprungen
er/sie/es wäre gesprungen
wir wären gesprungen
ihr wärt gesprungen
sie/Sie wären gesprungen

The conditional perfect is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Er wäre ins Wasser gesprungen gestern.” — “He would have jumped into the water yesterday.”

Imperative

Person Form
du spring
wir springen
ihr springt
sie springen

The imperative is used for direct commands and instructions. With springen 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: “Spring ins Wasser!” — “Jump into the water!”

Present participle (Partizip I)

Form German
Present participle springend

The present participle (Partizip I) is used as an adjective and for describing an action in progress. For example, the participle springend describes something that is jumping. The present-tense sentence “Ich springe über den Zaun jeden Tag.” — “I jump over the fence every day.” shows the same verb in action.

Past participle (Partizip II)

Form German
Past participle gesprungen

The past participle (Partizip II) is used with an auxiliary to form the perfect tenses, and as an adjective. For example: “Ich bin über den Zaun gesprungen gestern.” — “I have jumped over the fence yesterday.”

Infinitive

Form German
Infinitive springen

The infinitive is the dictionary form of the verb, used after modal verbs and in infinitive constructions. The infinitive springen is the form you look up in a dictionary. In a sentence it appears after a modal verb or with zu, and in the future it follows werden, as in “Ich werde über den Zaun springen morgen.” — “I will jump over the fence tomorrow.”

Example sentences

Ten natural sentences with springen, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the German and try to produce it from the English.

  1. “Ich springe über den Zaun jeden Tag.” — “I jump over the fence every day.”
  2. “Du sprangst ins Wasser gestern.” — “You jumped into the water yesterday.”
  3. “Er ist hoch in die Luft gesprungen gestern.” — “He has jumped high into the air yesterday.”
  4. “Wir waren über den Zaun gesprungen vor der Party.” — “We had jumped over the fence before the party.”
  5. “Ich werde ins Wasser springen morgen.” — “I will jump into the water tomorrow.”
  6. “Du wirst hoch in die Luft gesprungen sein bis morgen.” — “You will have jumped high into the air by tomorrow.”
  7. “Es ist wichtig, dass er springe über den Zaun.” — “It is important that he jump over the fence.”
  8. “Ich spränge ins Wasser eines Tages.” — “I would jump into the water one day.”
  9. “Er wäre hoch in die Luft gesprungen gestern.” — “He would have jumped high into the air yesterday.”
  10. “Spring über den Zaun!” — “Jump over the fence!”

Common mistakes

1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Ich springen über den Zaun.”

✓ Right: “Ich springe über den Zaun.”

The infinitive springen never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated present form springe.

2. Using the wrong person’s form

✗ Wrong: “Ich springen über den Zaun.”

✓ Right: “Ich springe über den Zaun.”

springen is the sie form, not the ich form. Match the verb to the subject every time: ich goes with springe.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Ich springe über den Zaun gestern.”

✓ Right: “Ich bin über den Zaun gesprungen gestern.”

The time word gestern points to the past, so a finished action needs the Perfekt bin gesprungen, not the present.

4. Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger

✗ Wrong: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich springe über den Zaun.”

✓ Right: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich springe über den Zaun.”

After es ist wichtig, dass German needs Konjunktiv I, so use springe here, not the indicative springe.

5. Using the wrong auxiliary in the Perfekt

✗ Wrong: “Ich habe gesprungen über den Zaun.”

✓ Right: “bin gesprungen über den Zaun.”

The Perfekt of springen is formed with sein plus the past participle gesprungen: the ich form is bin gesprungen. Check the auxiliary in the table above before you build a perfect tense.

6. Using the preterite for a daily habit

✗ Wrong: “Ich sprang über den Zaun jeden Tag.”

✓ Right: “Ich springe über den Zaun jeden Tag.”

The preterite sprang describes a past action. For something you do every day, use the present springe.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on springen. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. What is the ich form of springen in the Present (Präsens)?

    • A) springe
    • B) springst
    • C) springt
    • D) springen

  2. What is the du form of springen in the Preterite (Präteritum)?

    • A) sprangen
    • B) sprangt
    • C) sprangst
    • D) sprang

  3. What is the er/sie/es form of springen in the Perfect (Perfekt)?

    • A) bist gesprungen
    • B) sind gesprungen
    • C) ist gesprungen
    • D) bin gesprungen

  4. What is the wir form of springen in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)?

    • A) wart gesprungen
    • B) waren gesprungen
    • C) war gesprungen
    • D) warst gesprungen

  5. What is the du form of springen in the Future (Futur I)?

    • A) werden springen
    • B) wirst springen
    • C) werde springen
    • D) wird springen

  6. What is the ich form of springen in the Future perfect (Futur II)?

    • A) werde gesprungen sein
    • B) wirst gesprungen sein
    • C) wird gesprungen sein
    • D) werden gesprungen sein

  7. What is the er/sie/es form of springen in the Konjunktiv I?

    • A) springe
    • B) springest
    • C) springen
    • D) springet

  8. What is the ich form of springen in the Konjunktiv II?

    • A) spränget
    • B) spränge
    • C) sprängest
    • D) sprängen

  9. What is the present participle (Partizip I) of springen?

    • A) fliegend
    • B) tanzend
    • C) springend
    • D) schwimmend

  10. What does springen mean in English?

  • A) to dance
  • B) to jump
  • C) to swim
  • D) to fly

Answer key

  1. A) springe — the ich form of springen in the Present (Präsens) is springe. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) sprangst — the du form of springen in the Preterite (Präteritum) is sprangst. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. C) ist gesprungen — the er/sie/es form of springen in the Perfect (Perfekt) is ist gesprungen. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. B) waren gesprungen — the wir form of springen in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt) is waren gesprungen. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) wirst springen — the du form of springen in the Future (Futur I) is wirst springen. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. A) werde gesprungen sein — the ich form of springen in the Future perfect (Futur II) is werde gesprungen sein. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. A) springe — the er/sie/es form of springen in the Konjunktiv I is springe. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. B) spränge — the ich form of springen in the Konjunktiv II is spränge. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. C) springend — the present participle (Partizip I) of springen is springend. The other options are the participles of neighbouring verbs.
  10. B) to jump — springen means “to jump” in English. The other options are the meanings of neighbouring verbs.

Frequently asked questions

What does springen mean in English?

springen means “to jump”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.

Is springen regular or irregular?

springen is irregular, and it is irregular in these tenses: present, preterite, past-participle, imperative. Partizip I is springend and Partizip II is gesprungen.

What are the participles of springen?

Partizip I is springend — use it as an adjective. Partizip II is gesprungen — use it with sein for the perfect tenses, as in bin gesprungen.

Which auxiliary does springen take in the Perfekt?

springen takes sein in the Perfekt: the ich form is bin gesprungen. All four perfect tenses on this page are built with sein plus the past participle gesprungen.

How do I say “I jump” in German?

Say “Ich springe über den Zaun jeden Tag.” — “I jump over the fence every day.” The ich form of the present is springe, and it is the form you will use most often.

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