Werden: Examples, Sentences and Quiz in German

Introduction

Werden means “to become”, 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 werden, 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 werden, in different tenses and with different subjects. Read the German first, guess the meaning, then check the English.

  1. “Ich werde Lehrer.” — “I become a teacher.”
  2. “Du wirst müde am Abend.” — “You become tired in the evening.”
  3. “Ich bin bald fertig geworden.” — “I have become ready soon.”
  4. “Er wurde Lehrer.” — “He became a teacher.”
  5. “Wir werden müde am Abend werden.” — “We will become tired in the evening.”
  6. “Du bist bald fertig geworden.” — “You have become ready soon.”
  7. “Ich würde Lehrer.” — “I would become a teacher.”
  8. “Er werde müde am Abend.” — “He becomes tired in the evening.”
  9. “Wir waren bald fertig geworden.” — “We had become ready soon.”
  10. “Er wird Lehrer werden.” — “He will become a teacher.”
  11. “Sie werden müde am Abend.” — “They become tired in the evening.”
  12. “Werde bald fertig!” — “Become ready soon!”

A short dialogue

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

Lena: “Wirst du Lehrer?” — “You become a teacher?” Jonas: “Ich werde Lehrer.” — “I become a teacher.” Lena: Und morgen? Jonas: “Ich werde müde am Abend werden.” — “I will become tired in the evening.” Lena: Und gestern? Jonas: “Ich bin bald fertig geworden.” — “I have become ready soon.” Lena: Und eines Tages? Jonas: “Ich würde Lehrer.” — “I would become a teacher.”

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.

Werden in different tenses

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

The present: habits and facts

In the present, werden describes habits, facts and what is happening now. The ich form is werde: “Ich werde Lehrer.” — “I become a teacher.”

The preterite: the past as a finished event

In the preterite, werden describes one finished action in the past, the way a story tells it. The er form is wurde: “Er wurde müde am Abend.” — “He became tired in the evening.”

The Perfekt: finished actions

In the Perfekt, werden reports one finished action in everyday speech, built with sein plus the participle geworden. The ich form is bin geworden: “Ich bin bald fertig geworden.” — “I have become ready soon.”

The future: what will happen

In the future, werden talks about what will happen. The wir form is werden werden: “Wir werden Lehrer werden.” — “We will become a teacher.”

Konjunktiv II: what would happen

In Konjunktiv II, werden talks about what would happen. Konjunktiv II doubles as the German conditional — there is no separate conditional tense. The du form is würdest: “Du würdest müde am Abend.” — “You would become tired in the evening.”

Konjunktiv I: reported speech

In reported speech, werden appears in Konjunktiv I, reporting what someone else said. The er form is werde: “Er werde bald fertig.” — “He becomes ready soon.” 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 werden Lehrer.”

✓ Right: “Ich werde Lehrer.”

The infinitive werden never takes a subject. After ich you need the conjugated form werde.

Using the wrong person’s form

✗ Wrong: “Du werde Lehrer.”

✓ Right: “Du wirst Lehrer.”

werde is the ich form. With du you need wirst. Check the subject before you choose the form.

Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Ich werde Lehrer gestern.”

✓ Right: “Ich bin Lehrer geworden.”

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

Using the indicative in reported speech

✗ Wrong: “Ich werde Lehrer.” (quoted as reported speech)

✓ Right: “Ich werde Lehrer.” (quoted as reported speech)

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

Forgetting the auxiliary in the Perfekt

✗ Wrong: “Ich geworden Lehrer.”

✓ Right: “Ich bin Lehrer geworden.”

The Perfekt of werden needs the auxiliary sein plus the participle geworden: the full ich form is bin geworden.

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

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

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

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

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

    • A) sind geworden
    • B) ist geworden
    • C) bin geworden
    • D) bist geworden

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

    • A) wurde
    • B) wurdest
    • C) wurdet
    • D) wurden

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

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

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

    • A) würden
    • B) würdet
    • C) würde
    • D) würdest

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

    • A) werdet
    • B) werde
    • C) werdest
    • D) werden

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

    • A) warst geworden
    • B) waren geworden
    • C) wart geworden
    • D) war geworden

  9. What is the past participle of werden?

    • A) gesollt
    • B) geworden
    • C) gekonnt
    • D) gemusst

  10. What does werden mean in English?

  • A) to have to
  • B) should, to be supposed to
  • C) to become
  • D) to be able to

Answer key

  1. B) werde — the ich form of werden in the Present (Präsens) is werde. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. D) wirst — the du form of werden in the Present (Präsens) is wirst. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. B) ist geworden — the er/sie/es form of werden in the Perfect (Perfekt) is ist geworden. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. D) wurden — the wir form of werden in the Preterite (Präteritum) is wurden. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. C) wirst werden — the du form of werden in the Future (Futur I) is wirst werden. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) würde — the ich form of werden in the Konjunktiv II (conditional) is würde. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. B) werde — the er/sie/es form of werden in the Konjunktiv I is werde. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. D) war geworden — the ich form of werden in the Pluperfect (Plusquamperfekt) is war geworden. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) geworden — the past participle of werden is geworden. The other options are the participles of neighbouring verbs.
  10. C) to become — werden means “to become” in English. The other options are the meanings of neighbouring verbs.

Frequently asked questions

What does werden mean in English?

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

Is werden regular or irregular?

werden is irregular in these tenses: present, preterite, perfect, pluperfect, future, future-perfect, konjunktiv-1, konjunktiv-2, conditional-perfect, imperative, past-participle. The present participle is werdend and the past participle is geworden.

How do I practise werden every day?

Say one sentence with werden 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 werde Lehrer.”, “Ich bin Lehrer geworden.” and “Ich werde Lehrer werden.”. 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 werden, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

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