In this lesson, we´ll talk about German participles as adjectives. In addition to using the past participle to form perfect tenses and the passive voice, German participles are primarily employed as adjectives or in participial clauses.
In English, participles are typically referred to as the present participle (e.g., “lesend,” “überwältigend,” etc.) and the past participle (e.g., “gestellt,” “geworfen,” etc.). However, these terms can be misleading, as they do not always indicate present or past time.
In German, they are usually referred to as das erste Partizip (the first participle) and das zweite Partizip (the second participle) or simply Partizip I and Partizip II.
CONTENT
Present Participle
Gerundive
Past Participle
Usage of past participle
Active and Passive Meaning
Adjectives and Participles as Nouns
| present participle | der einfahrende Zug (the arriving train) das weinende Kind (the crying child) die lächelnde Frau (the smiling woman) | einfahrend + an adjective ending | Der Zug fährt ein. (The train arrives.) | the action in the sentence is still not complete |
| past participle | der eingefahrene Zug die eingebaute Küche | eingefahren + an adjective ending | Active: Der Zug ist eingefahren. (The train has arrived.) Passive: Die Küche wurde eingebaut. (The kitchen was installed.) | the action in the sentence is complete |
| simple participles: die angekommene Ausländerin (the foreigner who arrived) expanded participles: die frisch angekommene Ausländerin (the newly arrived foreigner) Gerundiv (zu+ Participle I): noch zu speichernde Daten (Data still to be saved), noch zu lösende Probleme (problems still to be solved), einzuhaltende Vorschriften (regulations to be complied with) | ||||
How to form the present participle
In English, the present participle is a verb form ending in -ing, which may be used as an adjective or a noun. In German, you simply add -d to the infinitive of the verb to form the present participle, which may then be used as an adjective with all the usual endings.
For example:
spielend
singend
lesend
Present participle as adjective expresses a continuous action, that is, simultaneity.
For example:
Continuous action: Ich finde das dauernde Klingeln des Telefons unangenehm.- I find the constant ringing of the telephone unpleasant.
Simultaneity: Die singenden Kinder gehen durch den Park.- The singing children walk through the park .
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Grammar Content
Gerundive
If Participle I is used with “zu”, then it is Gerundive. The gerundive is mostly used in written speech, it is very common in scientific texts and has a passive meaning. With this form, necessity or possibility can be emphasized.
Exampeles:
necessity: noch zu speichernde Daten – zu + Particip I =Die Daten müssen noch gespeichert werden.- The data still needs to be saved.
possibility: noch zu lösende Probleme -zu + Particip I = Die Probleme können gelöst werden.- The problems can be solved.
How to form the past participle
The formation of the past participle in German depends on whether the verb is weak, strong or mixed.
Weak (regular) verbs
- To form the past participle of weak verbs in German, you add ge- to the beginning of the verb stem and -t to the end.
| Infinitive | omit -en | Add ge- and -t |
| spielen (to play) | spiel- | gespielt |
| machen (to do) | mach- | gemacht |
Note that one exception to this rule is weak verbs ending in -ieren, which omit the ge.
| studieren (to study) | studiert (studied) |
Strong (irregular) verbs
- To form the past participle of strong verbs, you add ge- to the beginning of the verb stem and -en to the end. The vowel in the stem may also change.
| Infinitive | omit -en | Add ge- and -en |
| gehen (to go) | geh- | gegangen |
| sprechen (to speak) | sprech- | gesprochen |
Mixed (irregular) verbs
- To form the past participle of mixed verbs, you add ge- to the beginning of the verb stem and, like weak verbs, -t to the end. As with many strong verbs, the stem vowel may also change.
| Infinitive | omit -en | Add ge- and -t |
| kennen (to know) | kenn- | gekannt |
| denken (to think) | denk- | gedacht |
Separable and inseparable prefixes
- The past participle of separable verbs is also formed in the above way, except that the separable prefix is joined onto the front of the ge.
For example:
Ich habe die Flasche aufgemacht. – I opened the bottle. - With inseparable verbs, the only difference is that past participles are formed without the ge-.
For example:
Das habe ich schon bezahlt. – I’ve already paid for that.
Er hat sich endlich entschlossen. – He’s finally decided.
Usage of past participle
The past participle is used to create tenses, such as the perfect and pluperfect, as well as to form the passive voice.
Additionally, the past participle of a verb can function as an adjective, appearing in either attributive or predicative forms.
Typically, transitive verbs can be used as adjectives.
However, some intransitive verbs can also serve as adjectives, specifically those that form the perfect tense with “sein.”
It’s important to note that verbs sein, haben, arbeiten, antworten, danken, gefallen, nützen, schlafen, sitzen i stehen cannot be used as adjectives in the past participle form.
In English, the present participle is a verb form ending in -ing, which may be used as an adjective or a noun. In German, you simply add -d to the infinitive of the verb to form the present participle, which may then be used as an adjective with all the usual endings.
For example:
ein fachendes Kind- a laughing Kind
singende Mädchen – singing girls
eine weinende Frau – a crying woman
Note that the present participles of sein and haben cannot be used like this. The past participle of a verb can also be used as an adjective.
For example:
Meine Mutter hat meine verlorenen Sachen gefunden. – My mother found my lost things.
Active and passive meaning of participle adjectives
Transitive verbs have a passive meaning.
Examples:
das vollgetankte Auto – das Auto, das vollgetankt wurde
die renovierte Wohnung – die Wohnung, die renoviert wurde
die gelieferte Ware – die Ware, die geliefert wurde
Intransitive verbs, which form the perfect form with sein, have an active meaning. These verbs include: ankommen, einschlafen, sinken, steigen, verblühen, verbrennen, wachsen.
Examples:
das eingeschlafene Kind – das Kind, das eingeschlafen ist
der gestiegene Preis – der Preis, der gestiegen ist
die verbrannte Pizza – die Pizza, die verbrannt ist
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Grammar Content
Adjectives and Participles used as nouns
In German, almost any adjective can be used as a noun.
der Alte –the old man
die Alte – the old woman
die Alten – the old people
Adjectives used as nouns like this have a capital letter, but they keep their adjectival ending.
This ending is “weak” or “strong” depending on the determiner, as the table below shows for der Jugendliche – the young man
obdachlos – der Obdachlose, eine Ondachlose, die Obdachlosen (množina), viele Obdachlose
| Singular | |
| N. der Jugentliche G. des Jugendlichen D. dem Jugendlichen A. den des Jugendlichen | N. ein Jugentlicher G. eines Jugendlichen D. einem Jugendlichen A. einen Jugendlichen |
| Plural | |
| N. die Jugentlichen G. der Jugendlichen D. den Jugendlichen A. die des Jugendlichen | N. Jugentliche G. Jugendlicher D. Jugendlichen A. Jugendliche |
The femininte wquivalent has the adjective endings, e.g. in the nominative case singular die Jugndliche, eine Jugendliche. Correspondingly, neuter adjectival nouns have the appropriate neuter adjective endings, e.g. das Schöne – the beautiful thing/ quality.
Some participles can be used as nouns.
For Example:
vorgesetzt – ein Vorgesetzter, die Vorgesetzte (Superior)
abgeordnet – ein Abgeordneter, die Abgeordnete (Member of Parliament)
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