Before you start
Meet herkommen
Read how the verb is used, then write your own 10 sentences with it.
All 2 meanings
- (intransitive) to come over, come here (towards the speaker)
- to come from
Build the meaning
her- + kommen
- her-
- toward the speaker or a reference point
- kommen
- to come
Kommen directed her brings someone toward the speaker or reference point.
So herkommen means to come here; to come over.
A memory aid, not a rule: prefixes change meaning from verb to verb.
Learning approach inspired by this explanation in r/German.
Separable verb: her·kommen
In a main clause the prefix her splits off and goes to the end. After weil, dass and other subordinating words, the verb stays in one piece at the end.
Main clauseKomm bitte schnell her.Please come here quickly.
Subordinate clauseSie freut sich, weil ihr Bruder heute herkommt.She is happy because her brother is coming here today.
Participle: hergekommenzu-infinitive: herzukommen
Forms
How herkommen changes
| Pronoun | Präsens | Präteritum |
|---|---|---|
| ich | komme her | kam her |
| du | kommst her | kamst her |
| er/sie/es | kommt her | kam her |
| wir | kommen her | kamen her |
| ihr | kommt her | kamt her |
| Sie | kommen her | kamen her |
Partizip II hergekommen · Perfekt with sein
Three examples
- 1Kommst du heute her?Are you coming here today?present with separated prefix
- 2Er ist gestern spät hergekommen.He came here late yesterday.Perfekt with sein
- 3Ich weiß, dass sie aus Berlin herkommt.I know that she comes from Berlin.verb at the end after dass
Verb family
More verbs built on kommen
Same base verb, a different prefix, a new meaning.
- ankommento arrive
- vorkommento happen, occur, seem
- zurückkommento return
- hereinkommento come in
- herauskommento come out
- zukommento come towards, be in store
- aufkommento come up, arise, pay for
- entgegenkommento come to meet, accommodate