German verbs

German verbs may be classified as either weak, with a dental consonant inflection, or strong, showing a vowel gradation (ablaut). Both of these are regular systems. Most verbs of both types are regular, though various subgroups and anomalies do arise; however, textbooks for learners often class all strong verbs as irregular. The only completely irregular verb in the language is sein (to be). There are more than 200 strong and irregular verbs, but just as in English, there is a gradual tendency for strong verbs to become weak. As German is a Germanic language, the German verbs can be understood historically as a development of the Germanic verbs. Bare infinitives The bare infinitive consists of the root and the suffix -en. With verbs whose roots end in el or er, the e of the infinitive suffix is dropped. laufen 'to run' lächeln 'to smile' meistern 'to master' Prefixes General overview of the most common German prefixes with their literal English translation Aspect prefixes Prefixes that indicate aspect, result, or combinatorial/additional meaning Prefix Verb Literal meaning English meaning auf- legen to lay on/up to hang up the phone; to publish; to apply (makeup); to select and pl