The Usage of Tenses in German

Note that in German there only are the simple tenses.

1. Present Tense.

Present tense is used when

· something is on-going, happening right a this very moment,

· stating facts,

· something occurs regularly,

· talking about the future.

2. Present Perfect.

Present perfect is used when

· talking and writing about something that happened in the past in an informal context.

3. Past Tense.

Past tense is used when

· writing about something that happened in the past in a formal context.

Modal auxiliary verbs and the verbs "sein" and "haben" usually are only used in past tense.

4. Past Perfect.

Past perfect is used when

· talking or writing about something that happened before the event related in either present perfect or past tense.

5. Future Tense.

Future tense is used to

· make forecasts, such as based on statistics,

· express high probability in assumptions

· give orders.

sbnn/tempora/feb2001