Good to know. Irregular (strong) verb: the stem changes. Learn the key forms together and the rest follows.
nehmen in every tense
The three you'll use most are highlighted: Präsens for now, Perfekt for the past when you speak, Futur I for later.
Präsens
now
| ich | nehmeI take |
|---|---|
| du | nimmstyou take |
| er/sie/es | nimmthe/she takes |
| wir | nehmenwe take |
| ihr | nehmtyou take |
| sie/Sie | nehmenthey take |
Präteritum
past, mostly written
| ich | nahmI took |
|---|---|
| du | nahmstyou took |
| er/sie/es | nahmhe/she took |
| wir | nahmenwe took |
| ihr | nahmtyou took |
| sie/Sie | nahmenthey took |
Perfekt
past, spoken, with haben
| ich | habe genommenI have taken |
|---|---|
| du | hast genommenyou have taken |
| er/sie/es | hat genommenhe/she has taken |
| wir | haben genommenwe have taken |
| ihr | habt genommenyou have taken |
| sie/Sie | haben genommenthey have taken |
Plusquamperfekt
had done
| ich | hatte genommenI had taken |
|---|---|
| du | hattest genommenyou had taken |
| er/sie/es | hatte genommenhe/she had taken |
| wir | hatten genommenwe had taken |
| ihr | hattet genommenyou had taken |
| sie/Sie | hatten genommenthey had taken |
Futur I
will do
| ich | werde nehmenI will take |
|---|---|
| du | wirst nehmenyou will take |
| er/sie/es | wird nehmenhe/she will take |
| wir | werden nehmenwe will take |
| ihr | werdet nehmenyou will take |
| sie/Sie | werden nehmenthey will take |
Imperativ
telling someone to do it
| du | Nimm! |
|---|---|
| ihr | Nehmt! |
| Sie | Nehmen Sie! |
nehmen in use
- A1
Ich nehme die Suppe.
I'll have the soup.
- A1
Nimm den Bus, das ist schneller.
Take the bus, it's quicker.
- A2
Wer hat mein Handy genommen?
Who took my phone?
- B1
Sie nahm ihre Tasche und ging.
She took her bag and left.
Phrases
- Platz nehmento take a seat
Good to know
- e → i: du nimmst, er nimmt.
- Ordering: Ich nehme ... = I'll have ...
Build it yourself.
Ziplex has a Verben bauen game: build verb forms from tiles, with the verbs from your own posts. Plus short posts at your level to see them in action.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is nehmen with haben or sein in the Perfekt?
nehmen takes haben. For example: habe genommen.
What is the past tense of nehmen?
Präteritum: nahm. Perfekt: habe genommen.
Is nehmen a regular verb?
No, it's irregular (strong): the stem changes.