langula
Sein and haben
Why is it “ich bin” but “er ist”?
Hallo, mein Name ist Thomas.
Hello, my name is Thomas.
Take a look
- Hallo, mein Name ist Thomas.Hello, my name is Thomas.
- Ich habe zwei Brüder und eine Schwester.I have two brothers and one sister.
- Ich bin müde und möchte schlafen.I’m tired and would like to sleep.
The rule
Use sein to say who someone is, how they are, or where something is: Ich bin müde. Use haben to say what someone has or experiences: Ich habe großen Hunger. Both verbs are common and change their forms in special ways. Ordinary verb endings are not enough here. Learn ich bin, du bist, er ist and ich habe, du hast, er hat as complete sets.
Goes with lesson 1, 3, 12 of the course.
What differs for you
English has be and have, so the difference between a state and possession is familiar. Both English verbs are irregular, which also prepares you for German “sein” and “haben”. The German forms do not match the English ones: “ich bin” but “mein Name ist”, “ich habe” but “mein Onkel hat”. Choose the verb first, then the form for the subject.
The forms
sein and haben in the present tense
| Person | sein | haben |
|---|---|---|
| ich | bin | habe |
| du | bist | hast |
| er/sie/es | ist | hat |
| wir | sind | haben |
| ihr | seid | habt |
| sie/Sie | sind | haben |
Common mistakes
*ich bistich bin.*du habstdu hast.
Quick check
- Which form fits? Hallo, mein Name ___ Thomas.
- Which form fits? Ich ___ zwei Brüder und eine Schwester.
- Which form fits? Ich ___ müde und möchte schlafen.
- Which form fits? Mein Onkel ___ drei Kinder.
- Which form fits? Das Jahr ___ zwölf Monate.
The answers appear after “Check”.
- ist — “Name” is singular here, so the sein form is “ist”.
- habe — With ich as the owner of “Brüder”, haben becomes “habe”.
- bin — With ich and the state “müde”, sein becomes “bin”.
- hat — “Onkel” is singular; the matching haben form is “hat”.
- hat — “Jahr” is singular; the matching haben form is “hat”.
The same exercises come back in the course — there Langula remembers what you know and asks again at the right moment. Learn German free →
Learn German, don’t just read about it
The sentences on this page are part of the free course — with pronunciation and repetition.