Good to know. Irregular (strong) verb: the stem changes. Learn the key forms together and the rest follows.
trinken 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 | trinkeI drink |
|---|---|
| du | trinkstyou drink |
| er/sie/es | trinkthe/she drinks |
| wir | trinkenwe drink |
| ihr | trinktyou drink |
| sie/Sie | trinkenthey drink |
Präteritum
past, mostly written
| ich | trankI drank |
|---|---|
| du | trankstyou drank |
| er/sie/es | trankhe/she drank |
| wir | trankenwe drank |
| ihr | tranktyou drank |
| sie/Sie | trankenthey drank |
Perfekt
past, spoken, with haben
| ich | habe getrunkenI have drunk |
|---|---|
| du | hast getrunkenyou have drunk |
| er/sie/es | hat getrunkenhe/she has drunk |
| wir | haben getrunkenwe have drunk |
| ihr | habt getrunkenyou have drunk |
| sie/Sie | haben getrunkenthey have drunk |
Plusquamperfekt
had done
| ich | hatte getrunkenI had drunk |
|---|---|
| du | hattest getrunkenyou had drunk |
| er/sie/es | hatte getrunkenhe/she had drunk |
| wir | hatten getrunkenwe had drunk |
| ihr | hattet getrunkenyou had drunk |
| sie/Sie | hatten getrunkenthey had drunk |
Futur I
will do
| ich | werde trinkenI will drink |
|---|---|
| du | wirst trinkenyou will drink |
| er/sie/es | wird trinkenhe/she will drink |
| wir | werden trinkenwe will drink |
| ihr | werdet trinkenyou will drink |
| sie/Sie | werden trinkenthey will drink |
Imperativ
telling someone to do it
| du | Trink! |
|---|---|
| ihr | Trinkt! |
| Sie | Trinken Sie! |
trinken in use
- A1
Ich trinke gern Kaffee.
I like drinking coffee.
- A1
Was möchten Sie trinken?
What would you like to drink?
- A2
Wir haben zu viel Wein getrunken.
We drank too much wine.
Phrases
- etwas trinken gehento go for a drink
Good to know
- Irregular: trank, getrunken.
- etwas trinken gehen = to go for a drink.
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 trinken with haben or sein in the Perfekt?
trinken takes haben. For example: habe getrunken.
What is the past tense of trinken?
Präteritum: trank. Perfekt: habe getrunken.
Is trinken a regular verb?
No, it's irregular (strong): the stem changes.