Before you start
Meet antreten
Read how the verb is used, then write your own 10 sentences with it.
All 5 meanings
- (also military) to line up; to stand for a muster or report
- (also sports, politics) to compete; to run
- (transitive) to begin (a duty or task, also a voyage); to take (office); to accept (an inheritance) [auxiliary haben]
- (transitive) to kick against (a device or machine) to start it; to kick start (a motorcycle) [auxiliary haben]
- (transitive) to tread down (soil)
Build the meaning
an- + treten
- an-
- toward a place or task; beginning an engagement
- treten
- to step
You step up to a task, position, or contest and begin taking part.
So antreten means to take up a position or duty; to begin; to compete.
A memory aid, not a rule: prefixes change meaning from verb to verb.
Learning approach inspired by this explanation in r/German.
Separable verb: an·treten
In a main clause the prefix an splits off and goes to the end. After weil, dass and other subordinating words, the verb stays in one piece at the end.
Main clauseWir treten um acht an.We report for duty at eight.
Subordinate clause…, weil wir um acht antreten.…, because we report for duty at eight.
Participle: **angetreten**zu-infinitive: **anzutreten**
Forms
How antreten changes
| Pronoun | Präsens | Präteritum |
|---|---|---|
| ich | trete an | trat an |
| du | trittst an | tratst an |
| er/sie/es | tritt an | trat an |
| wir | treten an | traten an |
| ihr | tretet an | tratet an |
| Sie | treten an | traten an |
Partizip II angetreten · Perfekt with sein
Three examples
- 1Unser Team tritt heute gegen die andere Schule an.Our team is competing against the other school today.competing against someone
- 2Sie ist gestern ihre neue Arbeit angetreten.She started her new job yesterday.Perfekt with sein
- 3Er muss morgen früh zum Dienst antreten.He has to report for duty early tomorrow.modal verb with infinitive
Verb family
More verbs built on treten
Same base verb, a different prefix, a new meaning.