Before you start
Meet tun
Read how the verb is used, then write your own 10 sentences with it.
All 10 meanings
- to do (to perform or execute an action)
- to do (harm or good, but negative by default) [with dative ‘to someone’]
- (somewhat informal, often reinforced with “so”) to pretend, to play-act [with als ob (+ clause) ‘doing something’]
- (chiefly colloquial) to put, to place, to add (especially of smaller objects or ingredients)
- (chiefly colloquial, impersonal, with “es”) to work, to function
- (northern and western Germany, colloquial, reflexive, with an indefinite pronoun) to make a difference; to be different
Forms
How tun changes
| Pronoun | Präsens | Präteritum |
|---|---|---|
| ich | tue | tat |
| du | tust | tatest |
| er/sie/es | tut | tat |
| wir | tun | taten |
| ihr | tut | tatet |
| Sie | tun | taten |
Partizip II getan · Perfekt with haben
Three examples
- 1Was tust du heute?What are you doing today?present-tense question
- 2Ich habe das für dich getan.I did that for you.Perfekt with haben
- 3Was soll ich tun?What should I do?modal verb with infinitive
Verb family
Separable verbs built on tun
Add a prefix to tun and the meaning changes.