Stehen Conjugation in German
stehen means “to stand” in English, and it is one of the first verbs German learners meet — it sits at number 31 in VerbFlow’s frequency list for German verbs. You will meet it in everyday sentences such as “Ich stehe vor der Tür.” — “I stand in front of the door.” — 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 stehen — every tense, every person, the present participle and the past participle — with notes, examples, common mistakes and a quiz.
Quick facts
- Infinitive: stehen
- English: to stand
- Verb type: Irregular
- Irregular in: present, preterite, past-participle, imperative
- Present participle (Partizip I): stehend
- Past participle (Partizip II): gestanden
- 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 stehen, 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 stehen in every tense, you can recognise it in speech even before you can pronounce every form perfectly.
Three things to remember about stehen
- 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 gestanden. 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 stehend and gestanden: 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 stehen. 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 | stehe |
| du | stehst |
| er/sie/es | steht |
| wir | stehen |
| ihr | steht |
| sie/Sie | stehen |
The present (Präsens) is used for habits, facts and things happening now. With stehen 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 stehe im Garten bei den Blumen.” — “I stand in the garden by the flowers.”
Preterite (Präteritum)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | stand |
| du | standest |
| er/sie/es | stand |
| wir | standen |
| ihr | standet |
| sie/Sie | standen |
The preterite (Präteritum) is used for completed actions in the past, mostly in written German and in stories. With stehen 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 standest im Garten bei den Blumen.” — “You stood in the garden by the flowers.”
Perfect (Perfekt)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | habe gestanden |
| du | hast gestanden |
| er/sie/es | hat gestanden |
| wir | haben gestanden |
| ihr | habt gestanden |
| sie/Sie | haben gestanden |
The perfect (Perfekt) is used for completed actions in the past, especially in spoken German. For example: “Er hat im Garten bei den Blumen gestanden.” — “He has stood in the garden by the flowers.”
Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | hatte gestanden |
| du | hattest gestanden |
| er/sie/es | hatte gestanden |
| wir | hatten gestanden |
| ihr | hattet gestanden |
| sie/Sie | hatten gestanden |
The pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt) is used for an action completed before another past action. For example: “Ich hatte im Garten bei den Blumen gestanden.” — “I had stood in the garden by the flowers.”
Future (Futur I)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | werde stehen |
| du | wirst stehen |
| er/sie/es | wird stehen |
| wir | werden stehen |
| ihr | werdet stehen |
| sie/Sie | werden stehen |
The future (Futur I) is used for what will happen, for predictions and for intentions. For example: “Ich werde im Garten bei den Blumen stehen.” — “I will stand in the garden by the flowers.”
Future perfect (Futur II)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | werde gestanden haben |
| du | wirst gestanden haben |
| er/sie/es | wird gestanden haben |
| wir | werden gestanden haben |
| ihr | werdet gestanden haben |
| sie/Sie | werden gestanden haben |
The future perfect (Futur II) is used for what will have happened by a point in the future. For example: “Du wirst im Garten bei den Blumen gestanden haben.” — “You will have stood in the garden by the flowers.”
Konjunktiv I
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | stehe |
| du | stehest |
| er/sie/es | stehe |
| wir | stehen |
| ihr | stehet |
| sie/Sie | stehen |
Konjunktiv I is used for reported speech — reporting what someone else said — and in formal written German. For example: “Er stehe im Garten bei den Blumen.” — “He stands in the garden by the flowers.”
Konjunktiv II (conditional)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | stände |
| du | ständest |
| er/sie/es | stände |
| wir | ständen |
| ihr | ständet |
| sie/Sie | ständen |
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 stände im Garten bei den Blumen.” — “I would stand in the garden by the flowers.”
Conditional perfect (Konjunktiv II + participle)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | hätte gestanden |
| du | hättest gestanden |
| er/sie/es | hätte gestanden |
| wir | hätten gestanden |
| ihr | hättet gestanden |
| sie/Sie | hätten gestanden |
The conditional perfect (Konjunktiv II + past participle) is used for what would have happened in a different past. For example: “Er hätte im Garten bei den Blumen gestanden.” — “He would have stood in the garden by the flowers.”
Imperative (Imperativ)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| du | steh |
| wir | stehen |
| ihr | steht |
| sie/Sie | stehen |
The imperative (Imperativ) is used for direct commands, requests and instructions. With stehen 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: “Steh im Garten bei den Blumen!” — “Stand in the garden by the flowers!”
Present participle (Partizip I)
| Form | German |
|---|---|
| Present participle (Partizip I) | stehend |
The present participle (Partizip I) is used as an adjective or adverb, describing an ongoing action. For example, the participle stehend 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) | gestanden |
The past participle (Partizip II) is used with an auxiliary to form the perfect tenses, and as an adjective. For example: “Ich habe vor der Tür gestanden.” — “I have stood in front of the door.”
Infinitive (Infinitiv)
| Form | German |
|---|---|
| Infinitive | stehen |
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 stehen, covering different tenses and persons. Say each one aloud, then cover the German and try to produce it from the English.
- “Ich stehe vor der Tür.” — “I stand in front of the door.”
- “Du standest im Garten bei den Blumen.” — “You stood in the garden by the flowers.”
- “Er hat jeden Morgen am Fenster gestanden.” — “He has stood at the window every morning.”
- “Ich werde vor der Tür stehen.” — “I will stand in front of the door.”
- “Du ständest im Garten bei den Blumen.” — “You would stand in the garden by the flowers.”
- “Ich hatte jeden Morgen am Fenster gestanden.” — “I had stood at the window every morning.”
- “Du wirst im Garten bei den Blumen gestanden haben.” — “You will have stood in the garden by the flowers.”
- “Er stehe jeden Morgen am Fenster.” — “He stands at the window every morning.”
- “Ich hätte vor der Tür gestanden.” — “I would have stood in front of the door.”
- “Steh vor der Tür!” — “Stand in front of the door!”
Common mistakes
1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form
✗ Wrong: “Ich stehen vor der Tür.”
✓ Right: “Ich stehe vor der Tür.”
The infinitive stehen never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated present form stehe.
2. Using the wrong person’s form
✗ Wrong: “Ich stehen vor der Tür.”
✓ Right: “Ich stehe vor der Tür.”
stehen is the sie form, not the ich form. Match the verb to the subject every time: ich goes with stehe.
3. Using the present for a finished past action
✗ Wrong: “Ich stehe vor der Tür gestern.”
✓ Right: “Ich habe vor der Tür gestanden.”
The time word gestern points to the past, so a finished action needs the Perfekt habe gestanden, not the present.
4. Using the wrong auxiliary in the Perfekt
✗ Wrong: “Ich bin vor der Tür gestanden.”
✓ Right: “Ich habe vor der Tür gestanden.”
The Perfekt of stehen is formed with haben plus the past participle gestanden: the ich form is habe gestanden. 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 stand vor der Tür gestern.” (in everyday speech)
✓ Right: “Ich habe vor der Tür gestanden.”
In everyday spoken German the Perfekt habe gestanden is the usual past tense. The preterite stand is correct in writing and in stories, but it sounds formal in conversation.
6. Using the du form when talking to a group
✗ Wrong: “Steh vor der Tür!” (said to several people)
✓ Right: “Steht vor der Tür!”
The du imperative steh is for one person you know well. For a group, use the ihr form steht.
Quiz: test yourself
Ten questions on stehen. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.
What is the ich form of stehen in the Present (Präsens)?
- A) stehst
- B) steht
- C) stehen
- D) stehe
What is the er/sie/es form of stehen in the Preterite (Präteritum)?
- A) standen
- B) standet
- C) stand
- D) standest
What is the er/sie/es form of stehen in the Perfect (Perfekt)?
- A) hast gestanden
- B) haben gestanden
- C) hat gestanden
- D) habe gestanden
What is the du form of stehen in the Future (Futur I)?
- A) wirst stehen
- B) werde stehen
- C) wird stehen
- D) werden stehen
What is the ich form of stehen in the Konjunktiv II (conditional)?
- A) ständen
- B) ständet
- C) stände
- D) ständest
What is the wir form of stehen in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)?
- A) hatte gestanden
- B) hattest gestanden
- C) hattet gestanden
- D) hatten gestanden
What is the er/sie/es form of stehen in the Konjunktiv I?
- A) stehest
- B) stehen
- C) stehet
- D) stehe
What is the du form of stehen in the Imperative (Imperativ)?
- A) steh
- B) stehen
- C) steht
- D) stehst
What is the past participle of stehen?
- A) geblieben
- B) gelegen
- C) geheißen
- D) gestanden
What does stehen mean in English?
- A) to stay
- B) to lie
- C) to be called
- D) to stand
Answer key
- D) stehe — the ich form of stehen in the Present (Präsens) is stehe. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) stand — the er/sie/es form of stehen in the Preterite (Präteritum) is stand. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) hat gestanden — the er/sie/es form of stehen in the Perfect (Perfekt) is hat gestanden. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) wirst stehen — the du form of stehen in the Future (Futur I) is wirst stehen. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- C) stände — the ich form of stehen in the Konjunktiv II (conditional) is stände. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) hatten gestanden — the wir form of stehen in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt) is hatten gestanden. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) stehe — the er/sie/es form of stehen in the Konjunktiv I is stehe. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- A) steh — the du form of stehen in the Imperative (Imperativ) is steh. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
- D) gestanden — the past participle of stehen is gestanden; it is used with haben in the perfect tenses. The other options are the participles of neighbouring verbs.
- D) to stand — stehen means “to stand” in English. The other options are the meanings of neighbouring verbs.
Frequently asked questions
What does stehen mean in English?
stehen means “to stand”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.
Is stehen regular or irregular?
stehen is irregular, and it is irregular in these tenses: present, preterite, past-participle, imperative. The present participle is stehend and the past participle is gestanden.
What are the participles of stehen?
The present participle (Partizip I) is stehend — use it as an adjective for an ongoing action. The past participle (Partizip II) is gestanden — use it with haben for the perfect tenses, as in habe gestanden.
Which auxiliary does stehen take in the Perfekt?
stehen takes haben in the Perfekt: the ich form is habe gestanden. All four perfect tenses on this page are built with haben plus the past participle gestanden.
Does German have a separate conditional tense?
No. Konjunktiv II doubles as the conditional: the ich form stände 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 gestanden covers “would have” meanings.
How do I say “I stand in front of the door” in German?
Say “Ich stehe vor der Tür.” — “I stand in front of the door.” The ich form of the present is stehe, and it is the form you will use most often.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of stehen — every tense of stehen in one place.
- Stehen in the Perfekt tense — the full table and usage rules for one tense.
- Stehen examples and quiz — more example sentences and practice questions for this verb.
- Bleiben conjugation — another everyday German verb.
- Liegen conjugation — another everyday German verb.
- Heißen 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 stehen with the interactive tool.
- Conjugation Chart Printer — practise stehen with the interactive tool.
- Tense Finder — practise stehen with the interactive tool.