Before you start
Meet dienen
Read how the verb is used, then write your own 10 sentences with it.
All 5 meanings
- to serve [with bei (+ dative) ‘in public office or the military’]
- to serve, to be a servant (e.g. a butler or maid) [with dative ‘for someone’]
- to serve [with dative ‘a cause, a purpose’]
- to assist, to be of assistance
- to serve (as), to double (as), to act as a replacement (for) [with als (+ usually nominative) ‘something (a replacement)’]
Forms
How dienen changes
| Pronoun | Präsens | Präteritum |
|---|---|---|
| ich | diene | diente |
| du | dienst | dientest |
| er/sie/es | dient | diente |
| wir | dienen | dienten |
| ihr | dient | dientet |
| Sie | dienen | dienten |
Partizip II gedient · Perfekt with haben
Three examples
- 1Das Glas dient als Becher.The glass serves as a cup.serves as something
- 2Er hat drei Jahre gedient.He served for three years.Perfekt with haben
- 3Sie bleibt, weil sie ihrer Familie dienen will.She stays because she wants to serve her family.verb at the end after weil