Before you start
Meet pflegen
Read how the verb is used, then write your own 10 sentences with it.
All 8 meanings
- (transitive, medicine) to nurse; to care for someone in poor health
- (transitive) to take care of, to tend to, to maintain
- (intransitive, archaic) [with genitive ‘something/someone’]
- to improve or care for something in an intellectual sense [weak or strong verb]
- (transitive) to cultivate; to foster; to nurture; to maintain
- (intransitive, higher register or poetic) [with genitive ‘something’]
Forms
How pflegen changes
| Pronoun | Präsens | Präteritum |
|---|---|---|
| ich | pflege | pflegte |
| du | pflegst | pflegtest |
| er/sie/es | pflegt | pflegte |
| wir | pflegen | pflegten |
| ihr | pflegt | pflegtet |
| Sie | pflegen | pflegten |
Partizip II gepflegt · Perfekt with haben
Three examples
- 1Sie pflegt ihre Mutter.She cares for her mother.care for someone
- 2Wir haben den Garten gepflegt.We tended the garden.Perfekt with haben
- 3Er muss seine Hände pflegen.He has to care for his hands.modal verb with infinitive