{"id":2597,"date":"2018-10-07T09:50:48","date_gmt":"2018-10-07T09:50:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clozemaster.com\/blog\/?p=2597"},"modified":"2018-11-20T20:27:03","modified_gmt":"2018-11-20T20:27:03","slug":"german-verb-fahren-conjugation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.clozemaster.com\/blog\/german-verb-fahren-conjugation\/","title":{"rendered":"All About the Conjugation of the German Verb \u201cFahren\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Whether you\u2019re planning a road trip or want to tell your German friends about your upcoming vacation, it\u2019s likely you will need to use the German verb<\/strong> \u201cfahren\u201d <\/strong>(\u201cto drive\u201d, \u201cto travel\u201d, \u201cto go\u201d).<\/p>\n

This entire blog post is dedicated to the conjugation of the verb \u201cfahren<\/strong>\u201d. Let’s have a look at how it works!<\/p>\n

Just like the German verbs \u201csehen\u201d<\/a> or \u201cgehen\u201d<\/a>, \u201cfahren<\/strong>\u201d is also a stem-changing verb<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

This means that the stem or the ending of the verb changes depending on the tense and the person carrying out the action.<\/p>\n

With \u201cfahren<\/strong>\u201d, you will even encounter a couple of\u00a0Umlaute<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Conjugation of the Verb \u201cfahren\u201d \u2014 Present Tense (Pr\u00e4sens<\/em>)<\/h2>\n

When looking at the present tense conjugation of the verb \u201cfahren<\/strong>\u201d, you will see that the vowel \u201ca<\/strong>\u201d in the second person singular as well as in the third person singular is replaced by the Umlaut \u201c\u00e4<\/strong>\u201d.<\/p>\n

Singular<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
ich fahre<\/td>\nI travel, drive, go<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
du f\u00e4<\/strong>hrst<\/td>\nyou travel, drive, go<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
er\/sie\/es f\u00e4<\/strong>hrt<\/td>\nhe\/she\/it travels, drives, goes<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Plural<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
wir fahren<\/td>\nwe travel, drive, go<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
ihr fahrt<\/td>\nyou travel, drive, go<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
sie fahren<\/td>\nthey drive, travel, go<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Examples:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Wir fahren<\/strong> morgen nach Berlin. \u2014 We\u2019re driving to Berlin tomorrow<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Ich fahre<\/strong> am Montag in den Urlaub. \u2014 I\u2019m going on vacation on Monday<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Ich dachte, du f\u00e4hrst<\/strong> nicht nach Weimar? \u2014 I thought you weren\u2019t going to Weimar?<\/em><\/p>\n

Fahrt ihr <\/strong>mit dem Zug nach M\u00fcnchen? \u2014 Are you guys taking the train to Munich?<\/em><\/p>\n

Conjugation of the Verb \u201cfahren\u201d \u2014 Simple Past Tense (Imperfekt<\/em>)<\/h2>\n

As explained in other posts explaining the conjugation of various German verbs<\/a>, the simple past tense or Imperfekt <\/em>is mostly used in formal and written language, and not so much in spoken language. The verb also changes a vowel in the simple past tense \u2014 from \u201cfa<\/strong>hren\u201d to \u201cfu<\/strong>hr\u201d.<\/p>\n

Singular<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
ich fuhr<\/td>\nI traveled, drove, went<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
du fuhrst<\/td>\nyou traveled, drove, went<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
er\/sie\/es fuhr<\/td>\nhe\/she\/it traveled, drove, went<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Plural<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
wir fuhren<\/td>\nwe traveled, drove, went<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
ihr fuhrt<\/td>\nyou traveled, drove, went<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
sie fuhren<\/td>\nthey traveled, drove, went<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Examples: <\/strong><\/p>\n

Ich fuhr<\/strong> mit dem Zug nach Frankfurt und nahm dann ein Taxi. \u2014 I took the train to Frankfurt and then took a cab<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Sie fuhren<\/strong> am Freitag nach M\u00fcnchen. \u2014 They went to Munich on Friday<\/em>. (Or: They drove to Munich on Friday<\/em>.)<\/p>\n

Er fuhr<\/strong> mit ihrem Auto. \u2014 He took her car<\/em>. (Or: He drove her car<\/em>.)<\/p>\n

Wir fuhren<\/strong> mit ihrer Familie in den Urlaub. \u2014 We went on vacation with her family<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Conjugation of the Verb \u201cfahren\u201d \u2014 Present Perfect (Perfekt<\/em>)<\/h2>\n

This is the more common form of describing an event in the past, especially when it comes to spoken language. Most Germans will choose to use the Perfekt<\/em> instead of the Imperfekt<\/em>.<\/p>\n

In this tense, the prefix ge-<\/strong>\u00a0is added to the standard form of the verb \u201cfahren<\/strong>\u201d. Other than that, the verb doesn\u2019t change its stem or vowels.<\/p>\n

Just like with some other German verbs<\/a>, there is a \u201chelping verb\u201d that goes with \u201cfahren<\/strong>\u201d as well. In this case, it is the verb \u201csein<\/strong>\u201d (to be<\/em>).<\/p>\n

Singular<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
ich bin gefahren<\/td>\nI traveled \/ have traveled<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
du bist gefahren<\/td>\nyou traveled \/ have traveled<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
er\/sie\/es ist gefahren<\/td>\nhe\/she\/it traveled \/ has traveled<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Plural<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
wir sind gefahren<\/td>\nwe traveled \/have traveled<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
ihr seid gefahren<\/td>\nyou traveled \/ have traveled<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
sie sind gefahren<\/td>\nthey traveled \/ have traveled<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Examples:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ich bin<\/strong> am Sonntag nach Berlin gefahren<\/strong>. \u2014 I (have) traveled to Berlin on Sunday<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Bist du<\/strong> schon nach Hause gefahren<\/strong>? \u2014 Have\u00a0you already gone home<\/em>?<\/p>\n

Wir sind<\/strong> mit einem Mietauto gefahren<\/strong>. \u2014 We traveled in a rental car<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Seid ihr<\/strong> schon gefahren<\/strong>? \u2014 Have you guys already left? <\/em><\/p>\n

Conjugation of the Verb \u201cfahren\u201d \u2014 Past Perfect Tense (Plusquamperfekt<\/em>)<\/h2>\n

The helping verb \u201csein<\/strong>\u201d isn’t only used in the present perfect tense\u2014it also appears in the Plusquamperfekt<\/em>. On top of that, the prefix ge<\/strong>\u2014 is added here as well.<\/p>\n

Singular<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
ich war gefahren<\/td>\nI had traveled\/driven\/gone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
du warst gefahren<\/td>\nyou had traveled\/driven\/gone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
er\/sie\/es war gefahren<\/td>\nhe\/she\/it had traveled\/driven\/gone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Plural<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
wir waren gefahren<\/td>\nwe had traveled\/driven\/gone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
ihr wart gefahren<\/td>\nyou had traveled\/driven\/gone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
sie waren gefahren<\/td>\nthey had traveled\/driven\/gone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Examples: <\/strong><\/p>\n

Als die Kinder noch klein waren, waren sie<\/strong> oft nach Italien gefahren<\/strong>. \u2014 When the kids were still young, they had traveled to Italy a lot<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Ich war<\/strong> am Freitag mit dem Auto zur Arbeit gefahren<\/strong>. \u2014 I had traveled to work by car on Friday<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Er war<\/strong> mit seiner Frau in den Urlaub gefahren<\/strong>. \u2014 He had gone on vacation with his wife<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Ich dachte, sie war<\/strong> letzte Woche nach Berlin gefahren<\/strong>. \u2014 I thought she had traveled to Berlin last week<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Conjugation of the Verb \u201cfahren\u201d \u2014 Future Tense (Futur<\/em>)<\/h2>\n

This tense uses the helping verb \u201cwerden<\/strong>\u201d (to become<\/em>). This tense is mostly used in written or formal language, since in spoken language most Germans choose to use the present tense\u00a0<\/strong>to talk about events in the future.<\/p>\n

So instead of saying \u201cIch werde<\/strong> morgen nach M\u00fcnchen fahren<\/strong>\u201d (future tense), most people would probably say \u201cIch fahre<\/strong> morgen nach M\u00fcnchen\u201d (present tense).<\/p>\n

While the helping verb \u201cwerden<\/strong>\u201d is conjugated here, the actual verb \u201cfahren<\/strong>\u201d doesn\u2019t undergo any changes regardless of the person and number.<\/p>\n

Singular<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
ich werde fahren<\/td>\nI will travel\/drive\/go<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
du wirst fahren<\/td>\nyou will travel\/drive\/go<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
er\/sie\/es wird fahren<\/td>\nhe\/she\/it will travel\/drive\/go<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Plural<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
wir werden fahren<\/td>\nwe will travel\/drive\/go<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
ihr werdet fahren<\/td>\nyou will travel\/drive\/go<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
sie werden fahren<\/td>\nthey will travel\/drive\/go<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Examples:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sie wird<\/strong> nicht mit uns dorthin fahren<\/strong>. \u2014 She will not go there with us<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Ich dachte, du wirst<\/strong> mit seinem Auto fahren<\/strong>? \u2014 I thought you would take his car?<\/em><\/p>\n

Ihr werdet<\/strong> n\u00e4chste Woche auf den Schulausflug gehen<\/strong>. \u2014 You guys will go on the school\u2019s field trip next week. <\/em><\/p>\n

Wir werden<\/strong> nicht mit dem Zug fahren<\/strong>. \u2014 We will not be taking the train<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Conjugation of the Verb \u201cfahren\u201d \u2014 Future Perfect Tense (Futur II<\/em>)<\/h2>\n

The Futur II<\/em>-tense describes an action that had taken place in the past but has been finalized.<\/p>\n

Just as I have previously mentioned, this case is a bit of a rarity in German language. You might sometimes encounter it in written language, such as newspapers or books, but most people do not use it often in spoken language.<\/p>\n

This conjugation uses two helping verbs\u00a0\u2013 one is the verb \u201cwerden<\/strong>\u201d (to become<\/em>) and the other one is the verb \u201csein<\/strong>\u201d (to be<\/em>). While the verb \u201cwerden<\/strong>\u201d is conjugated, the verb \u201csein<\/strong>\u201d remains unchanged.<\/p>\n

Next to that, the prefix ge-<\/strong>\u00a0is added to the verb \u201cfahren<\/strong>\u201d.<\/p>\n

I know it sounds very much confusing right now, but you will understand once you see the conjugation tables below.<\/p>\n

Singular<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
ich werde gefahren sein<\/td>\nI will have traveled\/driven\/gone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
du wirst gefahren sein<\/td>\nyou will have traveled\/driven\/gone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
er\/sie\/es wird gefahren sein<\/td>\nhe\/she\/it will have traveled\/driven\/gone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Plural<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
wir werden gefahren sein<\/td>\nwe will have traveled\/driven\/gone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
ihr werdet gefahren sein<\/td>\nyou will have traveled\/driven\/gone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
sie werden gefahren sein<\/td>\nthey will have traveled\/driven\/gone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Examples:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Bis dahin werdet ihr<\/strong> schon gefahren<\/strong> sein<\/strong>. \u2014 At this point, you will have already gone<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Am Freitag werde ich<\/strong> schon nach Stuttgart gefahren sein<\/strong>. \u2014 I will have already gone to Stuttgart on Friday<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Du wirst<\/strong> doch nicht schon gefahren sein<\/strong>? \u2014 You haven\u2019t already started driving, have you?<\/em><\/p>\n

Conjugation of the Verb \u201cfahren\u201d \u2014 Command Form (Imperativ<\/em>)<\/h2>\n

Unlike the command form of other verbs, the Imperativ<\/em> of the verb \u201cfahren<\/strong>\u201d is one you might encounter quite often \u2014 or use yourself, if you are a bit prone to road rage.<\/p>\n

Fahr!<\/strong> \u2014 Go, drive!<\/em><\/p>\n

Fahrt!<\/strong> \u2014 Go, drive!<\/em> (Plural form)<\/p>\n

I hope this guide has helped you wrap your head around conjugation of the German verb \u201cfahren<\/strong>\u201d.<\/p>\n

As usual, you can test your knowledge below in the Clozemaster challenge \u2014 viel Erfolg<\/em>!<\/p>\n

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Challenge yourself with Clozemaster<\/h2>\n

Test your skills and see what you\u2019ve learned from this article by playing a selection of sentences with conjugated forms of the German verb \u201cfahren\u201d.<\/strong><\/p>\n