Studieren: Examples, Sentences and Quiz in German

Introduction

Studieren means “to study”, and it is one of the most useful verbs in German — you will meet it in conversation, in books, in films and in every textbook. This page puts the verb to work: twelve example sentences across the tenses, a short dialogue you can act out, a tour of the verb in its most important tenses, the mistakes learners make most often, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Every form on this page comes from the verified conjugation tables for studieren, so you can trust what you read here. Start with the examples, say them aloud, and then test yourself with the quiz at the end.

Example sentences

Twelve sentences with studieren, in different tenses and with different subjects. Read the German first, guess the meaning, then check the English.

  1. “Ich studiere Medizin in Berlin.” — “I study medicine in Berlin.”
  2. “Du studierst jeden Tag in der Bibliothek.” — “You study in the library every day.”
  3. “Ich habe Geschichte an der Universität studiert.” — “I have studied history at university.”
  4. “Er studierte Medizin in Berlin.” — “He studied medicine in Berlin.”
  5. “Wir werden jeden Tag in der Bibliothek studieren.” — “We will study in the library every day.”
  6. “Du hast Geschichte an der Universität studiert.” — “You have studied history at university.”
  7. “Ich studierte Medizin in Berlin.” — “I would study medicine in Berlin.”
  8. “Er studiere jeden Tag in der Bibliothek.” — “He studies in the library every day.”
  9. “Wir hatten Geschichte an der Universität studiert.” — “We had studied history at university.”
  10. “Er wird Medizin in Berlin studieren.” — “He will study medicine in Berlin.”
  11. “Sie studieren jeden Tag in der Bibliothek.” — “They study in the library every day.”
  12. “Studier Geschichte an der Universität!” — “Study history at university!”

A short dialogue

Lena and Jonas are talking about medicine in Berlin. Read the dialogue aloud, one voice per person, and notice how studieren changes with the tense and the subject. Every form of studieren below is taken from the verified tables.

Lena: “Studierst du Medizin in Berlin?” — “You study medicine in Berlin?” Jonas: “Ich studiere Medizin in Berlin.” — “I study medicine in Berlin.” Lena: Und morgen? Jonas: “Ich werde jeden Tag in der Bibliothek studieren.” — “I will study in the library every day.” Lena: Und gestern? Jonas: “Ich habe Geschichte an der Universität studiert.” — “I have studied history at university.” Lena: Und eines Tages? Jonas: “Ich studierte Medizin in Berlin.” — “I would study medicine in Berlin.”

Notice how the dialogue moves through time: the present for what is happening now, the future for tomorrow, the Perfekt for yesterday, and Konjunktiv II for what someone would do one day. The verb stays the same — only the tense changes — and that is the whole point of learning a conjugation table: one verb, many moments.

Studieren in different tenses

The same verb does different jobs in different tenses. Here are the six uses of studieren that matter most, each with a sentence you can copy and adapt.

The present: habits and facts

In the present, studieren describes habits, facts and what is happening now. The ich form is studiere: “Ich studiere Medizin in Berlin.” — “I study medicine in Berlin.”

The preterite: the past as a finished event

In the preterite, studieren describes one finished action in the past, the way a story tells it. The er form is studierte: “Er studierte jeden Tag in der Bibliothek.” — “He studied in the library every day.”

The Perfekt: finished actions

In the Perfekt, studieren reports one finished action in everyday speech, built with haben plus the participle studiert. The ich form is habe studiert: “Ich habe Geschichte an der Universität studiert.” — “I have studied history at university.”

The future: what will happen

In the future, studieren talks about what will happen. The wir form is werden studieren: “Wir werden Medizin in Berlin studieren.” — “We will study medicine in Berlin.”

Konjunktiv II: what would happen

In Konjunktiv II, studieren talks about what would happen. Konjunktiv II doubles as the German conditional — there is no separate conditional tense. The du form is studiertest: “Du studiertest jeden Tag in der Bibliothek.” — “You would study in the library every day.”

Konjunktiv I: reported speech

In reported speech, studieren appears in Konjunktiv I, reporting what someone else said. The er form is studiere: “Er studiere Geschichte an der Universität.” — “He studies history at university.” Read it as a quotation — someone said this, and the sentence reports it.

Common mistakes

Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Ich studieren Medizin in Berlin.”

✓ Right: “Ich studiere Medizin in Berlin.”

The infinitive studieren never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated form studiere.

Using the wrong person’s form

✗ Wrong: “Du studiere Medizin in Berlin.”

✓ Right: “Du studierst Medizin in Berlin.”

studiere is the ich form. With du you need studierst. Check the subject before you choose the form.

Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Ich studiere Medizin in Berlin gestern.”

✓ Right: “Ich habe Medizin in Berlin studiert.”

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

Using the indicative in reported speech

✗ Wrong: “Ich studiere Medizin in Berlin.” (quoted as reported speech)

✓ Right: “Ich studiere Medizin in Berlin.” (quoted as reported speech)

In reported speech German uses Konjunktiv I: studiere, not the indicative studiere.

Forgetting the auxiliary in the Perfekt

✗ Wrong: “Ich studiert Medizin in Berlin.”

✓ Right: “Ich habe Medizin in Berlin studiert.”

The Perfekt of studieren needs the auxiliary haben plus the participle studiert: the full ich form is habe studiert.

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) studierst
    • B) studiert
    • C) studieren
    • D) studiere

  2. What is the du form of studieren in the Present (Präsens)?

    • A) studieren
    • B) studierst
    • C) studiere
    • D) studiert

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

    • A) habe studiert
    • B) hast studiert
    • C) haben studiert
    • D) hat studiert

  4. What is the wir form of studieren in the Preterite (Präteritum)?

    • A) studiertet
    • B) studierten
    • C) studierte
    • D) studiertest

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

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

  6. What is the ich form of studieren in the Konjunktiv II (conditional)?

    • A) studiertest
    • B) studierten
    • C) studiertet
    • D) studierte

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

    • A) studierest
    • B) studieren
    • C) studiert
    • D) studiere

  8. What is the ich form of studieren in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt)?

    • A) hatten studiert
    • B) hattet studiert
    • C) hatte studiert
    • D) hattest studiert

  9. What is the past participle of studieren?

    • A) studiert
    • B) gelesen
    • C) geschrieben
    • D) verstanden

  10. What does studieren mean in English?

  • A) to study
  • B) to read
  • C) to write
  • D) to understand

Answer key

  1. D) studiere — the ich form of studieren in the Present (Präsens) is studiere. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. B) studierst — the du form of studieren in the Present (Präsens) is studierst. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) hat studiert — the er/sie/es form of studieren in the Perfect (Perfekt) is hat studiert. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. B) studierten — the wir form of studieren in the Preterite (Präteritum) is studierten. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. A) wirst studieren — the du form of studieren in the Future (Futur I) is wirst studieren. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. D) studierte — the ich form of studieren in the Konjunktiv II (conditional) is studierte. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) studiere — the er/sie/es form of studieren in the Konjunktiv I is studiere. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. C) hatte studiert — the ich form of studieren in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt) is hatte studiert. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. A) studiert — the past participle of studieren is studiert. The other options are the participles of neighbouring verbs.
  10. A) to study — studieren means “to study” in English. The other options are the meanings of neighbouring verbs.

Frequently asked questions

What does studieren mean in English?

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

Is studieren regular or irregular?

studieren is regular in every tense. The present participle is studierend and the past participle is studiert.

How do I practise studieren every day?

Say one sentence with studieren in the present, one in the Perfekt and one in the future every day, using the examples on this page as models — for example, “Ich studiere Medizin in Berlin.”, “Ich habe Medizin in Berlin studiert.” and “Ich werde Medizin in Berlin studieren.”. Then take the quiz again and check your answers against the key.

Pronunciation

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for studieren, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

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