Let’s LearnDeutsch

Lesson 6 of 69 · A1, Unit 2: Building blocks

To be and to have

sein (to be) and haben (to have) are irregular, and you'll use them in almost every conversation — and later to build the past tense. They're worth learning by heart now.

German uses haben in some places where English uses 'to be': Ich habe Hunger (I'm hungry, literally 'I have hunger'), Ich habe Durst (I'm thirsty), Ich habe keine Zeit (I don't have time).

By the end you can:

  • conjugate sein and haben for all persons
  • describe yourself and others with sein
  • say you're hungry, thirsty, or busy the German way

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