Before you start
Meet festlegen
Read how the verb is used, then write your own 10 sentences with it.
All 2 meanings
- to set, to determine
- (reflexive) to commit oneself to… (sich auf … festlegen )
Build the meaning
fest- + legen
- fest-
- firmly, into a fixed position or state
- legen
- to lay or place
You lay something down firmly so its position or terms are fixed.
So festlegen means to determine, decide, or lay down.
A memory aid, not a rule: prefixes change meaning from verb to verb.
Learning approach inspired by this explanation in r/German.
Separable verb: fest·legen
In a main clause the prefix fest splits off and goes to the end. After weil, dass and other subordinating words, the verb stays in one piece at the end.
Main clauseEr legt den Preis jetzt fest.He is setting the price now.
Subordinate clause…, weil sie den Preis festlegt.…, because she is setting the price.
Participle: festgelegtzu-infinitive: festzulegen
Forms
How festlegen changes
| Pronoun | Präsens | Präteritum |
|---|---|---|
| ich | lege fest | legte fest |
| du | legst fest | legtest fest |
| er/sie/es | legt fest | legte fest |
| wir | legen fest | legten fest |
| ihr | legt fest | legtet fest |
| Sie | legen fest | legten fest |
Partizip II festgelegt · Perfekt with haben
Three examples
- 1Wir legen heute den Termin fest.We are setting the date today.prefix goes to the end
- 2Sie haben gestern die Regeln festgelegt.They laid down the rules yesterday.Perfekt with haben
- 3Ich muss festlegen, wann wir gehen.I have to decide when we are leaving.infinitive with a modal
Verb family
More verbs built on legen
Same base verb, a different prefix, a new meaning.