Langvie / German grammar / German verbs with a vowel change
German verbs with a vowel change.
Some common verbs change their vowel, but only with du and er, sie, es.
Vowel change verbs in the present tense
Certain common verbs change their stem vowel, but only in the du and er/sie/es forms. The vowel a shifts to ä, while e shifts to i or ie.
| Infinitive | ich | du | er / sie / es |
|---|---|---|---|
| fahren | fahre | fährst | fährt |
| schlafen | schlafe | schläfst | schläft |
| sprechen | spreche | sprichst | spricht |
| essen | esse | isst | isst |
| lesen | lese | liest | liest |
| nehmen | nehme | nimmst | nimmt |
- Er spricht sehr gut Deutsch.He speaks German very well.
- Schläfst du gut, Maria?Do you sleep well, Maria?
Exceptions to remember
- The plural forms wir, ihr, and sie never change their stem vowel. Wir schlafen gut und ihr fahrt auch.
- The verbs essen and lesen already end in an s sound, so their du and er forms are identical. Du isst gut und er isst auch.
Practice it in the course
This rule is chapter 7 of 31 in the A1 German course in Langvie, after German haben and yes-no questions and before German word order: the verb in second position. In the app the chapter goes on with 8 exercises and a short spoken conversation with an AI partner, which opens with Du sprichst gut Deutsch! Sprichst du auch Englisch?
Pick the verb with the vowel change. Er ___ sehr gut Deutsch. (spreche / sprecht / spricht)
spricht. The verb sprechen changes e to i for er. He speaks German very well.
Practice this rule in Langvie.
Chapter 7 of the A1 course, with exercises, cards and a conversation in German.