100 German Verbs Face-Off (Part 2)

[B] to speak | Watch the vowel change: 'er spricht'. You'll hear 'Sprechen Sie...?' often – as in 'Do you speak...?' when asking if someone knows a language.

[A] to bring | A strong verb (brachte, gebracht) meaning bring/take. It’s cognate with English 'bring'. 'Mitbringen' means bring along. 'Bringst du was zu essen mit?' (Will you bring something to eat?)

[D] to live | As in being alive or residing. 'Ich lebe in Berlin' (I live in Berlin). For 'to live' in an apartment or location, Germans use either 'leben' or 'wohnen' (dwell).

[C] to drive | Or to travel/ride (by vehicle). Irregular du form (du fährst). 'Fahr nicht so schnell!' (Don't drive so fast!) is something you might hear on the Autobahn.

[A] to think | It’s used for expressing opinions (literally 'to mean/have an opinion'). 'Was meinst du?' = What do you think/mean? It's a regular verb, not to be confused with 'denken'.

[D] to ask | To question someone. 'Darf ich dich etwas fragen?' (May I ask you something?). Also used for 'to wonder' about something ('sich fragen').

[B] to know | To know a person or place. Remember, 'kennen' is for familiarity, while 'wissen' is for knowing facts. Two verbs for 'know'!

[C] to be valid | Often used as 'gelten als' (to be considered as). Also in phrases: 'Die Regeln gelten für alle' (The rules apply to everyone). A stem-vowel change verb (er gilt).

[C] to place | To put/place (usually upright or in a set position). E.g., 'Stell die Flasche auf den Tisch' (Place the bottle on the table). Regular verb.

[B] to play | Whether it's playing a game or an instrument. 'Spielst du Gitarre?' (Do you play guitar?). Also used for 'to act' in theater or film.

[D] to work | A regular verb, but note insertion of 'e' in du/er forms (du arbeitest). 'Arbeit macht frei' (work sets you free) is a famous and infamous phrase.

[A] to need | Regular verb. 'Ich brauche Hilfe' (I need help). In casual speech, Germans often drop 'zu' with it: 'Du brauchst nicht (zu) kommen' (You don't need to come).

[C] to follow | Often with dative: 'Folge mir!' (Follow me!). Also used figuratively, like following an argument. Regular verb.

[A] to learn | Everyone's doing this right now. 'Deutsch lernen macht Spaß!' (Learning German is fun!). Regular verb.

[B] to insist | It also means 'exist' and 'pass (an exam)'. Quite a range: 'Das Problem besteht noch' (The problem still exists) or 'Er hat die Prüfung bestanden' (He passed the exam).

[D] to understand | 'Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof' (I only understand "train station") is a funny idiom for "I have no idea what's going on." A useful verb to say you don't get it.

[D] to set | To set/put something down or also to sit (sich setzen = to sit down). Regular verb. 'Setz dich!' (Sit down!) is how you invite someone to take a seat.

[A] to get | False friend alert: 'bekommen' looks like 'become' but actually means 'to get/receive'. So don't mix them up! (e.g., 'Ich bekomme ein Geschenk' – I'm getting a present.)

[C] to begin | Pretty straightforward. Synonym of 'anfangen'. Irregular past participle (begonnen). 'Aller Anfang ist schwer' – all beginnings are hard, as the proverb goes.

[B] to tell | To narrate or tell a story. 'Erzähl mir mehr!' (Tell me more!). It’s related to 'zählen' (to count) — originally meaning to count out a tale.

[D] to try | To attempt something. 'Versuch macht klug' (attempt makes one wise) – you learn by trying. Also used for 'to tempt' in some contexts (Versuchung = temptation).

[C] to write | 'Schreiben' gave us 'scribe' and 'script'. Write letters, emails, even novels with it. Past participle 'geschrieben'. Germans also say 'Schreib mir!' (Write to me).

[A] to run | Means 'to run', but in some contexts Germans use it for walking too. If someone says 'Lauf!', they'd like you to move it, one way or another.

[B] to explain | 'Kannst du das erklären?' (Can you explain that?). Regular verb. Also means 'to declare' in some contexts, like declaring someone winner (zum Sieger erklären).

[C] to correspond | As in 'equivalent to'. 'Das entspricht meinen Erwartungen' (That meets/corresponds to my expectations). It’s a bit formal, often used in written context.

[D] to sit | As in being seated. 'Ich sitze auf dem Stuhl.' Irregular past (saß, gesessen). Not to be confused with 'setzen' (to set/place or sit down).

[A] to pull | Also 'to move' (houses): 'Wir ziehen nach Berlin' (We're moving to Berlin). Irregular past (zog, gezogen). Many compounds: anziehen (pull on = put on clothes).

[B] to shine | Also 'to seem/appear' (e.g., 'Es scheint so' – it seems so). The sun does it ('Die Sonne scheint'). A handy dual-meaning verb.

[A] to fall | Careful, it takes 'sein' as auxiliary in perfect (ist gefallen). So you literally 'are fallen' in German when you fell. Ouch!

[B] to belong | Used with 'zu': 'Das gehört mir' (That belongs to me) or 'Er gehört zur Familie' (He belongs to the family). Regular verb taking dative for the owner.