The idea
Present tense: ich baue, du baust, er/sie/es baut, wir bauen, ihr baut, sie/Sie bauen. Learn the sentence pattern etwas bauen; an etwas bauen together with the principal parts.
| Form | Deutsch |
|---|---|
| ich | baue |
| du | baust |
| er/sie/es | baut |
| wir | bauen |
| ihr | baut |
| sie/Sie | bauen |
| Präteritum | baute |
| Perfekt | hat gebaut |
| Imperativ (du) | Baue! |
| Muster | etwas bauen; an etwas bauen |
Meaning and sentence pattern
Bauen takes the thing constructed in the accusative. An plus dative can highlight ongoing work on a project.
Learn this pattern as a unit: etwas bauen; an etwas bauen. The six situations below show the verb with concrete objects, complements or circumstances.
Form check
Er hat gebauen.Er hat gebaut.Bauen is regular and has the participle gebaut.
Examples
- Ich baue ein kleines Regal für die Gewürze.I build a small shelf for the spices.
- Du baust die Brücke im Modell aus Holz.You build the model bridge from wood.
- Die Stadt baut einen neuen Radweg.The city is building a new cycle path.
- Wir bauten im Garten ein Hochbeet.We built a raised bed in the garden.
- Der Verein hat einen Unterstand für die Räder gebaut.The club built a shelter for the bicycles.
- Baue das Modell zuerst ohne die beweglichen Teile.First build the model without the moving parts.
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Watch out
Bauen is regular and has the participle gebaut.
Try it yourself
du ___ (bauen, Präsens)
Show answer or example answer
baust
baust: this is the second-person singular present form.
er/sie ___ (bauen, Präteritum)
Show answer or example answer
baute
baute: this is the third-person singular simple past.
Perfekt: er/sie hat ___
Show answer or example answer
gebaut
gebaut: in this use the perfect tense is hat gebaut.
Practice round
Answer three questions, then rebuild three German sentences. We keep your score.
du ___ (bauen, Präsens)
er/sie ___ (bauen, Präteritum)
Perfekt: er/sie hat ___
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
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Read the six situations aloud, compare the verb forms, and complete the present, past and participle checks. Then write a new sentence that follows etwas bauen; an etwas bauen.