The idea
Present tense: ich ernte, du erntest, er/sie/es erntet, wir ernten, ihr erntet, sie/Sie ernten. Learn the sentence pattern Obst oder Gemüse ernten together with the principal parts.
| Form | Deutsch |
|---|---|
| ich | ernte |
| du | erntest |
| er/sie/es | erntet |
| wir | ernten |
| ihr | erntet |
| sie/Sie | ernten |
| Präteritum | erntete |
| Perfekt | hat geerntet |
| Imperativ (du) | Ernte! |
| Muster | Obst oder Gemüse ernten |
Meaning and sentence pattern
Ernten describes gathering a crop when ready. Unlike verbs with the prefix er, ernten has ge in the participle because er is part of its stem.
Learn this pattern as a unit: Obst oder Gemüse ernten. The six situations below show the verb with concrete objects, complements or circumstances.
Form check
Wir haben die Äpfel erntet.Wir haben die Äpfel geerntet.Ernten is not an er-prefixed verb; its participle needs ge.
Examples
- Ich ernte die ersten Radieschen im Juni.I harvest the first radishes in June.
- Du erntest die Tomaten einzeln nach ihrer Reife.You harvest the tomatoes individually as they ripen.
- Der Hof erntet die Äpfel mit freiwilligen Helfern.The farm harvests the apples with volunteers.
- Wir ernteten letztes Jahr besonders viele Bohnen.We harvested especially many beans last year.
- Die Kinder haben ihre eigenen Kartoffeln geerntet.The children harvested their own potatoes.
- Ernte nur die Früchte, die schon reif sind.Harvest only the fruit that is already ripe.
Read-aloud uses a synthetic German voice available on your device. Voice quality and availability vary; it does not assess your pronunciation.
No German device voice is available. You can still read the text and use the linked listening resources.
Watch out
Ernten is not an er-prefixed verb; its participle needs ge.
Try it yourself
du ___ (ernten, Präsens)
Show answer or example answer
erntest
erntest: this is the second-person singular present form.
er/sie ___ (ernten, Präteritum)
Show answer or example answer
erntete
erntete: this is the third-person singular simple past.
Perfekt: er/sie hat ___
Show answer or example answer
geerntet
geerntet: in this use the perfect tense is hat geerntet.
Practice round
Answer three questions, then rebuild three German sentences. We keep your score.
du ___ (ernten, Präsens)
er/sie ___ (ernten, 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 Obst oder Gemüse ernten.