Before you start
Meet vortragen
Read how the verb is used, then write your own 10 sentences with it.
All 6 meanings
- (intransitive) to lecture; to give a report
- (transitive, of topics) to present; to report
- (transitive, of poems, texts, songs) to recite or sing before an audience
- (transitive, of ideas, literary) to suggest or propose to a decision maker; to argue
- (transitive, of objects) to carry or take up front
- (transitive, accounting, of an operating loss or other legal credit) to carry forward
Build the meaning
vor- + tragen
- vor-
- forward or before others
- tragen
- to carry
You carry words or music forward before an audience.
So vortragen means to present, perform, or recite.
A memory aid, not a rule: prefixes change meaning from verb to verb.
Learning approach inspired by this explanation in r/German.
Separable verb: vor·tragen
In a main clause the prefix vor splits off and goes to the end. After weil, dass and other subordinating words, the verb stays in one piece at the end.
Main clauseDie Schüler tragen ihre Arbeit vor.The students present their work.
Subordinate clauseIch höre zu, weil sie den Text vorträgt.I listen because she is reciting the text.
Participle: vorgetragenzu-infinitive: vorzutragen
Forms
How vortragen changes
| Pronoun | Präsens | Präteritum |
|---|---|---|
| ich | trage vor | trug vor |
| du | trägst vor | trugst vor |
| er/sie/es | trägt vor | trug vor |
| wir | tragen vor | trugen vor |
| ihr | tragt vor | trugt vor |
| Sie | tragen vor | trugen vor |
Partizip II vorgetragen · Perfekt with haben
Three examples
- 1Ich trage heute ein Lied vor.I’m performing a song today.present, prefix at the end
- 2Sie hat gestern ein Gedicht vorgetragen.She recited a poem yesterday.Perfekt with haben
- 3Er ist nervös, weil er morgen ein Lied vorträgt.He is nervous because he is performing a song tomorrow.verb at the end after weil
Verb family
More verbs built on tragen
Same base verb, a different prefix, a new meaning.