Versuchen: Examples, Sentences and Quiz in German

Introduction

Versuchen means “to try”, 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 versuchen, 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 versuchen, in different tenses and with different subjects. Read the German first, guess the meaning, then check the English.

  1. “Ich versuche das neue Rezept jeden Tag.” — “I try the new recipe every day.”
  2. “Du versuchst den Kuchen jeden Tag.” — “You try the cake every day.”
  3. “Ich habe das Spiel versucht gestern.” — “I have tried the game yesterday.”
  4. “Er versuchte das neue Rezept gestern.” — “He tried the new recipe yesterday.”
  5. “Wir werden den Kuchen versuchen morgen.” — “We will try the cake tomorrow.”
  6. “Du hast das Spiel versucht gestern.” — “You have tried the game yesterday.”
  7. “Ich versuchte das neue Rezept eines Tages.” — “I would try the new recipe one day.”
  8. “Es ist wichtig, dass er versuche den Kuchen.” — “It is important that he try the cake.”
  9. “Wir hatten das Spiel versucht vor der Party.” — “We had tried the game before the party.”
  10. “Er wird das neue Rezept versuchen morgen.” — “He will try the new recipe tomorrow.”
  11. “Sie versuchen den Kuchen jeden Tag.” — “They try the cake every day.”
  12. “Versuch das Spiel!” — “Try the game!”

A short dialogue

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

Lena: “Du versuchst das neue Rezept jeden Tag.” — “You try the new recipe every day.” Jonas: “Ich versuche das neue Rezept jeden Tag.” — “I try the new recipe every day.” Lena: “Du wirst den Kuchen versuchen morgen.” — “You will try the cake tomorrow.” Jonas: “Ich werde den Kuchen versuchen morgen.” — “I will try the cake tomorrow.” Lena: “Du hast das Spiel versucht gestern.” — “You have tried the game yesterday.” Jonas: “Ich habe das Spiel versucht gestern.” — “I have tried the game yesterday.” Lena: “Du versuchtest das neue Rezept eines Tages.” — “You would try the new recipe one day.” Jonas: “Ich versuchte das neue Rezept eines Tages.” — “I would try the new recipe one day.”

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.

Versuchen in different tenses

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

The present: habits and facts

In the present, versuchen describes habits, facts and what is happening now. The ich form is versuche: “Ich versuche das neue Rezept jeden Tag.” — “I try the new recipe every day.”

The preterite: the past in stories

In the preterite, versuchen describes a completed past action, mostly in writing and stories. The er form is versuchte: “Er versuchte den Kuchen gestern.” — “He tried the cake yesterday.”

The Perfekt: finished actions

In the Perfekt, versuchen reports one finished action, built with haben plus the participle versucht. The ich form is habe versucht: “Ich habe das Spiel versucht gestern.” — “I have tried the game yesterday.”

The future: what will happen

In the future, versuchen talks about what will happen. The wir form is werden versuchen: “Wir werden das neue Rezept versuchen morgen.” — “We will try the new recipe tomorrow.”

Konjunktiv II: what would happen

In Konjunktiv II, versuchen talks about what would happen. Konjunktiv II doubles as the conditional, and the periphrastic alternative with würde plus the infinitive expresses the same meaning. The du form is versuchtest: “Du versuchtest den Kuchen eines Tages.” — “You would try the cake one day.”

Konjunktiv I: reported speech

In Konjunktiv I, versuchen appears in reported speech, after triggers such as es ist wichtig, dass. The form is versuche, and the sentence keeps the same complement as the other tenses: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich versuche das Spiel.” — “It is important that I try the game.”

Common mistakes

Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Ich versuchen das neue Rezept.”

✓ Right: “Ich versuche das neue Rezept.”

The infinitive versuchen never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated form versuche.

Using the wrong person’s form

✗ Wrong: “Du versuche das neue Rezept.”

✓ Right: “Du versuchst das neue Rezept.”

versuche is the ich form. With du you need versuchst. Check the subject before you choose the form.

Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Ich versuche das neue Rezept gestern.”

✓ Right: “Ich habe das neue Rezept versucht gestern.”

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

Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger

✗ Wrong: “Es ist wichtig, dass du versuchst den Kuchen.”

✓ Right: “Es ist wichtig, dass du versuchest den Kuchen.”

After es ist wichtig, dass German needs Konjunktiv I: versuchest, not the indicative versuchst.

Forgetting the auxiliary in the Perfekt

✗ Wrong: “Ich versucht das neue Rezept.”

✓ Right: “Ich habe das neue Rezept versucht.”

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

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) versuchst
    • B) versucht
    • C) versuchen
    • D) versuche

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

    • A) versuchen
    • B) versuchst
    • C) versuche
    • D) versucht

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

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

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

    • A) versuchtet
    • B) versuchten
    • C) versuchte
    • D) versuchtest

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

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

  6. What is the ich form of versuchen in the Konjunktiv II?

    • A) versuchtest
    • B) versuchten
    • C) versuchtet
    • D) versuchte

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

    • A) versuchest
    • B) versuchen
    • C) versuchet
    • D) versuche

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

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

  9. What is the past participle (Partizip II) of versuchen?

    • A) versucht
    • B) probiert
    • C) geglaubt
    • D) gemeint

  10. What does versuchen mean in English?

  • A) to believe
  • B) to mean
  • C) to try
  • D) to try, to taste

Answer key

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

Frequently asked questions

What does versuchen mean in English?

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

Is versuchen regular or irregular?

versuchen is irregular in these tenses: present, preterite, past-participle, imperative. Partizip I is versuchend and Partizip II is versucht.

How do I practise versuchen every day?

Say one sentence with versuchen 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 versuche das neue Rezept jeden Tag.”, “Ich habe das neue Rezept versucht gestern.” and “Ich werde das neue Rezept versuchen morgen.”. 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 versuchen, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

Related pages