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German 2 Unit 2: The Perfekt with Sein

A smaller but very common group of verbs forms the Perfekt with sein instead of haben. Choosing the right helping verb is one of the most tested skills in second-semester German.

Covers: Verbs of motion with sein, Verbs of change of state, Sein, bleiben and passieren, Choosing haben or sein, Strong participles of sein verbs, Talking about trips and events

Study guide

Some verbs use sein as their Perfekt helping verb. The structure is the same as with haben: a conjugated form of sein in position two and the past participle at the end. Ich bin nach Hause gegangen means "I went home." The present-tense forms of sein are ich bin, du bist, er/sie/es ist, wir sind, ihr seid, sie/Sie sind. As with haben, only sein changes to match the subject; the participle never changes. In English we always say "have gone," never "am gone," so you cannot use English to decide which helping verb German needs. You have to know the rule.

The rule has two conditions. A verb takes sein when it has no direct object (it is intransitive) AND it expresses either movement from one place to another or a change of state. Motion verbs include gehen (gegangen), kommen (gekommen), fahren (gefahren), fliegen (geflogen), laufen (gelaufen), reisen (gereist), schwimmen (geschwommen) and wandern (gewandert). Change-of-state verbs describe becoming something different: aufstehen (aufgestanden), einschlafen (eingeschlafen), aufwachen (aufgewacht), werden (geworden), sterben (gestorben), wachsen (gewachsen). In each case the subject ends up in a new place or a new condition.

Three important verbs take sein even though they show neither motion nor change: sein itself (Ich bin krank gewesen), bleiben (Wir sind zu Hause geblieben) and passieren or geschehen (Was ist passiert?). Memorize these as exceptions. Notice that many sein verbs are strong and have participles with vowel changes: gehen becomes gegangen, fliegen becomes geflogen, steigen becomes gestiegen, sterben becomes gestorben, sein becomes gewesen, werden becomes geworden. Weak sein verbs include reisen (gereist), wandern (gewandert), aufwachen (aufgewacht) and passieren (passiert, with no ge- because of -ieren).

Some verbs can take either helping verb depending on meaning. Fahren with a direct object uses haben: Ich habe das Auto in die Garage gefahren (I drove the car into the garage, so the car moved). Without an object it uses sein: Ich bin nach Wien gefahren (I traveled to Vienna). The key question is whether there is a direct object in the accusative. Verbs that look like motion but involve no change of place, such as sitzen, stehen, liegen, schlafen and tanzen in standard German, use haben. Southern German and Austrian speakers often say ich bin gesessen, but on a test, follow the standard rule: ich habe gesessen.

When you tell a story about a trip or a weekend, you will mix haben and sein verbs freely: Am Freitag sind wir nach Hamburg gefahren. Wir haben im Hotel übernachtet, sind am Hafen spazieren gegangen und haben Fisch gegessen. Am Sonntag sind wir müde nach Hause gekommen. Each clause chooses its own helping verb. When two participles share a subject but need different helping verbs, you must repeat the helping verb: Ich bin früh aufgestanden und habe gefrühstückt. Using a single helping verb for both would be a grammar error.

Key ideas

• Sein is the Perfekt helping verb for intransitive verbs of motion or change of state.
• Sein, bleiben and passieren also take sein despite showing no motion or change.
• Many sein verbs are strong: gegangen, gekommen, geflogen, gewesen, geworden, gestorben.
• A verb that takes a direct object uses haben, even if it involves motion.
• Fahren, fliegen and similar verbs use sein alone but haben when they have an accusative object.
• Standard German uses haben for sitzen, stehen and liegen, even though southern speakers often use sein.
• When a story mixes verbs, each participle needs its own correct helping verb.

Formulas and rules

Common mistakes

• Using haben with motion verbs like gehen or fahren because English says "have gone."
• Forgetting that bleiben and sein take sein (Ich habe zu Hause geblieben).
• Using sein with fahren when there is a direct object (Ich bin das Auto gefahren).
• Using one helping verb for two participles that need different ones.
• Writing weak participles for strong sein verbs, such as gegeht or gekommt.

Before the test, make sure you can

• Conjugate sein as a helping verb for every subject.
• Apply the two-part test to decide whether a verb takes sein.
• Name the exceptions sein, bleiben and passieren.
• Give the participles of common sein verbs such as gehen, kommen, fahren, fliegen, werden and sterben.
• Choose haben or sein for fahren and fliegen based on whether there is a direct object.
• Narrate a trip in the Perfekt, mixing haben and sein correctly.
• Correct sentences that use the wrong helping verb.

Words to know

fahren

to drive, to travel

fliegen

to fly

reisen

to travel

ankommen

to arrive

abfahren

to depart

einsteigen

to get on (a vehicle)

aussteigen

to get off

der Flughafen

airport

der Bahnhof

train station

aufwachen

to wake up

aufstehen

to get up

einschlafen

to fall asleep

werden

to become

wachsen

to grow

sterben

to die

passieren

to happen

bleiben

to stay

der Urlaub

vacation

die Reise

trip

unterwegs

on the way

zurückkommen

to come back

Sample practice questions

30 more questions like these, from level 1 to 5, are in the practice set.