Tanzen in the Present Tense in German

Introduction

Tanzen means “to dance”, and this page covers exactly one thing: tanzen in the present tense. The present is the tense German speakers reach for when they talk about what happens regularly, what is true in general, and what is happening right now. On this page you will find the full present table for tanzen, how the tense is formed for this verb, the situations where it is used, how it differs from the preterite, worked examples, the mistakes learners make most often, an eight-question quiz with explained answers, and answers to the questions students ask about tanzen in the present. For example: “Ich tanze mit meiner Freundin jeden Tag.” — “I dance with my girlfriend every day.” Everything on this page uses the forms of tanzen exactly as they are conjugated in the present, so you can trust every form you see here.

Tanzen in the Present Tense — full table

Person Form
ich tanze
du tanzt
er/sie/es tanzt
wir tanzen
ihr tanzt
sie/Sie tanzen

Partizip I: tanzend · Partizip II: getanzt

The present participle is tanzend, which you use as an adjective. The past participle is getanzt, which you use with haben in the perfect tenses: the ich form of the Perfekt is habe getanzt, used for a completed action. Keep both forms in mind as you read the examples below, because the Präsens is only one part of how tanzen is used.

How the Präsens of tanzen is formed

The present of tanzen follows the regular weak pattern: take the stem and add the present endings, giving ich tanze, du tanzt, er/sie/es tanzt, wir tanzen, ihr tanzt, sie/Sie tanzen. The wir and ihr forms are the ones learners most often get wrong, because they expect a change that is not there — learn the six forms as two groups, the singular forms and the plural forms, and the pattern becomes automatic. The stem never changes in the present for this verb, so the only work is the endings.

The present stem also feeds other tenses: the preterite and Konjunktiv II are built from the same family of forms, so learning the present properly makes the rest of the conjugation easier. Partizip I tanzend and Partizip II getanzt belong to the same family — learn them together with the present table and you will recognise tanzen in every tense.

When to use the Präsens of tanzen

The present is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use tanzen in the present most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.

1. Dancing with my girlfriend — the everyday use

Tanzen is the verb for dancing with my girlfriend. It covers the ordinary, everyday situations where this verb appears, at home and outside. Example: “Ich tanze mit meiner Freundin jeden Tag.” — “I dance with my girlfriend every day.”

2. Dancing in the park — a second everyday use

Tanzen also covers dancing in the park. This use is very common in everyday speech, and it is the one learners meet next after the first. Example: “Du tanzt im Park jeden Tag.” — “You dance in the park every day.”

3. Dancing at the party — a third everyday use

In a third everyday situation, you use tanzen for dancing at the party. The same verb, the same present forms, a different situation — that is why the present is worth learning as a whole table rather than one form at a time. Example: “Er tanzt auf der Party jeden Tag.” — “He dances at the party every day.”

4. Habits and routines

The present tense is the tense of routine. When something happens every day, every week or every morning, the present is the natural choice, and tanzen is no exception. Use time expressions such as jeden Tag, immer or jede Woche to make the routine explicit. Example: “Wir tanzen mit meiner Freundin jeden Tag.” — “We dance with my girlfriend every day.”

5. What is happening right now

The present also describes an action in progress at this very moment. German often prefers the simple present where English would use the continuous form, so a sentence with tanzen in the present can mean both “I do this” and “I am doing this now”. Context tells the listener which one you mean. Example: “Ihr tanzt im Park jeden Tag.” — “You dance in the park every day.”

Present Tense vs Preterite: how to choose

The closest tense to the Präsens is the preterite, and learners mix them up constantly. The rule is simple: the preterite describes a completed past action, mostly in writing and stories, while the present describes habits and facts that are true now. The three pairs below use the same verb, so the only thing that changes is the time frame — and with it, the tense. Notice how the Präsens sentences use words such as jeden Tag or gestern, while the preterite sentences belong to a story told in the past. Those time words are your best clue when you are choosing a tense.

  • Present: “Ich tanze mit meiner Freundin jeden Tag.” — “I dance with my girlfriend every day.”

  • Preterite (Präteritum): “Ich tanzte mit meiner Freundin gestern.” — “I danced with my girlfriend yesterday.”

  • The Präsens sentence is about the present moment or one finished action in speech; the preterite sentence is about the past as it is told in writing. That difference — now or finished in speech versus told in a story — is the whole decision.

  • Present: “Du tanzt im Park jeden Tag.” — “You dance in the park every day.”

  • Preterite (Präteritum): “Du tanztest im Park gestern.” — “You danced in the park yesterday.”

  • The Präsens sentence is about the present moment or one finished action in speech; the preterite sentence is about the past as it is told in writing. That difference — now or finished in speech versus told in a story — is the whole decision.

  • Present: “Wir tanzen auf der Party jeden Tag.” — “We dance at the party every day.”

  • Preterite (Präteritum): “Wir tanzten auf der Party gestern.” — “We danced at the party yesterday.”

  • The Präsens sentence is about the present moment or one finished action in speech; the preterite sentence is about the past as it is told in writing. That difference — now or finished in speech versus told in a story — is the whole decision.

Example sentences: tanzen in the Präsens

Read these eight sentences out loud. They cover all six persons, so by the end you will have seen every form in the table used in a real sentence. Pay attention to the words around the verb — the time expressions, the objects, the other words — because those are what make each sentence sound natural.

  1. “Ich tanze im Park jeden Tag.” — “I dance in the park every day.”

  2. “Du tanzt auf der Party jeden Tag.” — “You dance at the party every day.”

  3. “Er tanzt mit meiner Freundin jeden Tag.” — “He dances with my girlfriend every day.”

  4. “Wir tanzen im Park jeden Tag.” — “We dance in the park every day.”

  5. “Ihr tanzt auf der Party jeden Tag.” — “You dance at the party every day.”

  6. “Sie tanzen mit meiner Freundin jeden Tag.” — “They dance with my girlfriend every day.”

  7. “Ich tanze im Park jeden Tag.” — “I dance in the park every day.”

  8. “Du tanzt auf der Party jeden Tag.” — “You dance at the party every day.”

Common mistakes with tanzen in the Präsens

These are the errors learners actually make with this verb in this tense. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.

  • Wrong: “Ich tanzen mit meiner Freundin.” Right: “Ich tanze mit meiner Freundin.” Why: The ich form is tanze, not tanzen. Tanzen belongs with sie. Mixing the two groups is the most common error with this verb.

  • Wrong: “Wir tanzen mit meiner Freundin.” Right: “Wir tanzen mit meiner Freundin.” Why: Wir keeps its own form: tanzen, not tanzen. Learn wir and ihr as a separate pair from the singular forms.

  • Wrong: “Ich tanzen mit meiner Freundin.” (with the infinitive) Right: “Ich tanze mit meiner Freundin.” Why: The infinitive tanzen never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated present form tanze.

  • Wrong: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich tanze mit meiner Freundin.” Right: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich tanze mit meiner Freundin.” Why: After es ist wichtig, dass German needs Konjunktiv I, so use tanze here, not the indicative tanze.

Quiz: tanzen in the Präsens

Choose the correct answer for each question, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained, so a wrong answer still teaches you something.

1. Complete the sentence: “Ich ______ im Park.”

  • (A) tanzen
  • (B) tanzte
  • (C) tanze
  • (D) tanzt

2. Complete the sentence: “Du ______ auf der Party.”

  • (A) tanze
  • (B) tanzen
  • (C) tanztest
  • (D) tanzt

3. Complete the sentence: “Er ______ mit meiner Freundin.”

  • (A) tanze
  • (B) tanzen
  • (C) tanzte
  • (D) tanzt

4. Complete the sentence: “Wir ______ im Park.”

  • (A) tanzen
  • (B) tanze
  • (C) tanzt
  • (D) tanzten

5. Complete the sentence: “Ihr ______ auf der Party.”

  • (A) tanze
  • (B) tanzen
  • (C) tanztet
  • (D) tanzt

6. Complete the sentence: “Sie ______ mit meiner Freundin.”

  • (A) tanzen
  • (B) tanze
  • (C) tanzt
  • (D) tanzten

7. What does tanzen mean in English?

  • (A) to cook
  • (B) to clean
  • (C) to dance
  • (D) to sing

8. What is the past participle (Partizip II) of tanzen?

  • (A) gesungen
  • (B) gekocht
  • (C) geputzt
  • (D) getanzt

Answer key

  1. C) tanze — The ich form is tanze.
  2. D) tanzt — The du form is tanzt.
  3. D) tanzt — The er/sie/es form is tanzt.
  4. A) tanzen — The wir form is tanzen.
  5. D) tanzt — The ihr form is tanzt.
  6. A) tanzen — The sie/Sie form is tanzen.
  7. C) to dance — tanzen means “to dance”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
  8. D) getanzt — The past participle of tanzen is getanzt; the Präsens is formed with haben + getanzt.

Frequently asked questions

How is the present of tanzen formed?

The present of tanzen is regular: take the stem and add the present endings, giving ich tanze, du tanzt, er tanzt, wir tanzen, ihr tanzt, sie tanzen.

When do I use the present of tanzen?

Use the present for habits, general truths and what is happening now — for example, “Ich tanze mit meiner Freundin jeden Tag.” — “I dance with my girlfriend every day.” For a finished past action, use the Perfekt instead.

What is the difference between the present and the preterite of tanzen?

The present describes what is true now or happens regularly; the preterite describes a completed past action, mostly in writing. Compare “Ich tanze mit meiner Freundin jeden Tag.” with “Ich tanzte mit meiner Freundin gestern.” — the first is now, the second is the past as it is told in a story.

Pronunciation

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

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