Wählen in the Present Tense in German

Introduction

Wählen means “to vote, to choose”, and this page covers exactly one thing: wählen 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 wählen, 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 wählen in the present. For example: “Ich wähle den neuen Bürgermeister jeden Tag.” — “I choose the new mayor every day.” Everything on this page uses the forms of wählen exactly as they are conjugated in the present, so you can trust every form you see here.

Wählen in the Present Tense — full table

Person Form
ich wähle
du wählst
er/sie/es wählt
wir wählen
ihr wählt
sie/Sie wählen

Partizip I: wählend · Partizip II: gewählt

The present participle is wählend, which you use as an adjective. The past participle is gewählt, which you use with haben in the perfect tenses: the ich form of the Perfekt is habe gewählt, 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 wählen is used.

How the Präsens of wählen is formed

The present of wählen follows the regular weak pattern: take the stem and add the present endings, giving ich wähle, du wählst, er/sie/es wählt, wir wählen, ihr wählt, sie/Sie wählen. 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 wählend and Partizip II gewählt belong to the same family — learn them together with the present table and you will recognise wählen in every tense.

When to use the Präsens of wählen

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

1. Choosing the new mayor — the everyday use

Wählen is the verb for choosing the new mayor. It covers the ordinary, everyday situations where this verb appears, at home and outside. Example: “Ich wähle den neuen Bürgermeister jeden Tag.” — “I choose the new mayor every day.”

2. Choosing the red dress — a second everyday use

Wählen also covers choosing the red dress. This use is very common in everyday speech, and it is the one learners meet next after the first. Example: “Du wählst das rote Kleid jeden Tag.” — “You choose the red dress every day.”

3. Choosing my favourite film — a third everyday use

In a third everyday situation, you use wählen for choosing my favourite film. 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 wählt meinen Lieblingsfilm jeden Tag.” — “He chooses my favourite film 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 wählen is no exception. Use time expressions such as jeden Tag, immer or jede Woche to make the routine explicit. Example: “Wir wählen den neuen Bürgermeister jeden Tag.” — “We choose the new mayor 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 wählen 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 wählt das rote Kleid jeden Tag.” — “You choose the red dress 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 wähle den neuen Bürgermeister jeden Tag.” — “I choose the new mayor every day.”

  • Preterite (Präteritum): “Ich wählte den neuen Bürgermeister gestern.” — “I chose the new mayor 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 wählst das rote Kleid jeden Tag.” — “You choose the red dress every day.”

  • Preterite (Präteritum): “Du wähltest das rote Kleid gestern.” — “You chose the red dress 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 wählen meinen Lieblingsfilm jeden Tag.” — “We choose my favourite film every day.”

  • Preterite (Präteritum): “Wir wählten meinen Lieblingsfilm gestern.” — “We chose my favourite film 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: wählen 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 wähle das rote Kleid jeden Tag.” — “I choose the red dress every day.”

  2. “Du wählst meinen Lieblingsfilm jeden Tag.” — “You choose my favourite film every day.”

  3. “Er wählt den neuen Bürgermeister jeden Tag.” — “He chooses the new mayor every day.”

  4. “Wir wählen das rote Kleid jeden Tag.” — “We choose the red dress every day.”

  5. “Ihr wählt meinen Lieblingsfilm jeden Tag.” — “You choose my favourite film every day.”

  6. “Sie wählen den neuen Bürgermeister jeden Tag.” — “They choose the new mayor every day.”

  7. “Ich wähle das rote Kleid jeden Tag.” — “I choose the red dress every day.”

  8. “Du wählst meinen Lieblingsfilm jeden Tag.” — “You choose my favourite film every day.”

Common mistakes with wählen 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 wählen den neuen Bürgermeister.” Right: “Ich wähle den neuen Bürgermeister.” Why: The ich form is wähle, not wählen. Wählen belongs with sie. Mixing the two groups is the most common error with this verb.

  • Wrong: “Wir wählen den neuen Bürgermeister.” Right: “Wir wählen den neuen Bürgermeister.” Why: Wir keeps its own form: wählen, not wählen. Learn wir and ihr as a separate pair from the singular forms.

  • Wrong: “Ich wählen den neuen Bürgermeister.” (with the infinitive) Right: “Ich wähle den neuen Bürgermeister.” Why: The infinitive wählen never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated present form wähle.

  • Wrong: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich wähle den neuen Bürgermeister.” Right: “Es ist wichtig, dass ich wähle den neuen Bürgermeister.” Why: After es ist wichtig, dass German needs Konjunktiv I, so use wähle here, not the indicative wähle.

Quiz: wählen 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 ______ das rote Kleid.”

  • (A) wähle
  • (B) wählst
  • (C) wählt
  • (D) wählen

2. Complete the sentence: “Du ______ meinen Lieblingsfilm.”

  • (A) wählt
  • (B) wählen
  • (C) wählst
  • (D) wähle

3. Complete the sentence: “Er ______ den neuen Bürgermeister.”

  • (A) wählen
  • (B) wählt
  • (C) wähle
  • (D) wählst

4. Complete the sentence: “Wir ______ das rote Kleid.”

  • (A) wählst
  • (B) wählt
  • (C) wählen
  • (D) wähle

5. Complete the sentence: “Ihr ______ meinen Lieblingsfilm.”

  • (A) wählen
  • (B) wählt
  • (C) wähle
  • (D) wählst

6. Complete the sentence: “Sie ______ den neuen Bürgermeister.”

  • (A) wählst
  • (B) wählt
  • (C) wählen
  • (D) wähle

7. What does wählen mean in English?

  • (A) to try
  • (B) to try, to taste
  • (C) to believe
  • (D) to vote, to choose

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

  • (A) geglaubt
  • (B) gewählt
  • (C) versucht
  • (D) probiert

Answer key

  1. A) wähle — The ich form is wähle.
  2. C) wählst — The du form is wählst.
  3. B) wählt — The er/sie/es form is wählt.
  4. C) wählen — The wir form is wählen.
  5. B) wählt — The ihr form is wählt.
  6. C) wählen — The sie/Sie form is wählen.
  7. D) to vote, to choose — wählen means “to vote, to choose”. The other options are the meanings of different verbs.
  8. B) gewählt — The past participle of wählen is gewählt; the Präsens is formed with haben + gewählt.

Frequently asked questions

How is the present of wählen formed?

The present of wählen is regular: take the stem and add the present endings, giving ich wähle, du wählst, er wählt, wir wählen, ihr wählt, sie wählen.

When do I use the present of wählen?

Use the present for habits, general truths and what is happening now — for example, “Ich wähle den neuen Bürgermeister jeden Tag.” — “I choose the new mayor every day.” For a finished past action, use the Perfekt instead.

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

The present describes what is true now or happens regularly; the preterite describes a completed past action, mostly in writing. Compare “Ich wähle den neuen Bürgermeister jeden Tag.” with “Ich wählte den neuen Bürgermeister 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 wählen, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

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