Getting the Picture with German

Prefixes: The 3 Categories,

Explained
1. Trennbare Präfixe (Separable Prefixes)
January 2, 2023

German Prefix Breakdown: A Close Look at

the 3 Prefix Categories
German verbs, the words that bring life and action to the language,
are often hard for English speakers to comprehend.

This is why it is essential to not only know the context in which the
word is being used, but to know how prefixes can drastically alter
the meaning of common verbs.

So here’s a clear picture of how German prefixes work!

Contents
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Breaking It Down: An Intro to German Prefixes

Prefixes are divided into three categories: Trennbar (separable),
untrennbar (inseparable) and dual—which function as both
separable and inseparable depending on context.
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 Understanding the general meanings of these prefixes and how they
affect the verbs to which they are attached is essential for success in
the German language, be it in speaking, listening, or writing.

While there is, for the most part, no perfect translation for German
prefixes, some do follow patterns that can help you translate
meanings of verbs with added prefixes.

Understanding these patterns, along with understanding context, will

give you a fighting chance in not only understanding and translating
German, but also in speaking and communicating to a higher level of
fluency.

Separable prefixes are, in my opinion, the toughest of the three

types. Verbs with separable prefixes will appear in conversation and
writing before the actual prefix, which tricks you into thinking the
verb means one thing until the very end of the sentence—when you
finally encounter the prefix and uncover the true meaning.

Perhaps nobody understood this difficulty better than Mark Twain,

whose now infamous “The Awful German Language” provides an
analysis of German separable prefixes:

“The Germans have another kind of parenthesis, which they make by

splitting a verb in two and putting half of it at the beginning of an
exciting chapter and the other half at the end of it. Can any one
conceive of anything more confusing than that? These things are
called ‘separable verbs.’ The German grammar is blistered all over
with separable verbs; and the wider the two portions of one of them
are spread apart, the better the author of the crime is pleased with
his performance.”

While Twain’s analysis of German grammar may be from an American

viewpoint, it does echo some of the hardships anyone who wants to
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 learn German may face. Verbs that stretch for sentences, even
paragraphs, are the scourge of beginners to seasoned pros.

Verbs with separable prefixes are also very widely used in German.
They function as such: The prefix separates from the verb stem
(which is conjugated as if it were a normal, standalone verb) and
then is dropped at the end of the sentence or clause. In spoken
German, the separable prefix is stressed.

Das Pferd steigt ohne Angst in das Flugzeug ein. (Without fear, the
horse boards the airplane.)

Zur Beerdigung, bringt die alte Frau ihren Lieblingskuchen mit. (The
old woman is bringing her favorite cake to the funeral.)

In the present perfect tense, both the verb stem and the prefix are
dropped to the end in the place of the auxiliary verb haben
or sein. The ge- that would be added to a normal verb stem is still
added: It is, however, placed between the separable prefix and the
verb.

For example, the verb aufräumen (to tidy up, to clean up) would
become aufgeräumt in the present perfect tense.

Die beschuldigten Kinder haben das Zimmer aufgeräumt. (The

accused children cleaned up the room.)

Common Separable Prefixes

Be aware that the approximate translations given below will not work
100% of the time, and your best bet at achieving success is to simply
memorize the meanings of words.

An
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 This one is similar to the English “to” or “from.”

schauen — to look
anschauen — to look at/examine
kommen — to come
ankommen — to arrive

Auf

This is used widely, and can sometimes mean “up” or “on.”

machen — to make
aufmachen — to open
stehen — to stand
aufstehen — to stand/get up

Aus

Also widely used, this most often means “out” or “from.”

führen — to lead
ausführen — to execute/perform
kommen — to come
auskommen — to come out

See how this could get tricky?

Ein

Possibly the easiest, this one means “in” or sometimes “down.”

drücken — to press
eindrücken — to press in/dent
atmen — to breathe
einatmen — to inhale
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 Mit

Another easy one, this usually means “with.”

kommen — to come
mitkommen — to come with
machen — to make, to do
mitmachen — to do with

Nach

This can mean “after” or function like the English prefix “re-.”

gehen — to go
nachgehen — to pursue/trace
füllen — to fill
nachfüllen — to refill

Zu

This one is harder to translate, but can mean “to.”

geben — to give
zugeben — to admit/confess
lassen — to let
zulassen — to authorize

As mentioned, you can’t always rely on these translations. However,

for verbs like kommen, machen and spielen that can take several
different meanings and prefixes, knowing the rough translations of
the prefixes can do wonders.

2. Untrennbare Präfixe (Inseparable Prefixes)

OK. We are through with the hardest part. Let out a sigh of relief and
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 pat yourself on the back!

Inseparable prefixes function in the same way as separable prefixes,

only the prefix remains attached to the verb. This makes it a lot
easier to identify the full verb, particularly in conversation or while
listening. Unlike separable prefixes, inseparable prefixes are not
stressed when spoken.

Ich erkenne diesen Stadtteil. (I recognize this part of the city.)

In the perfect tense, verbs with inseparable prefixes do not take the
normal ge-. They rather keep their prefix and are for the most part
conjugated as a normal verb in the perfect tense.

Die Katze hat ihren Feind erschossen. (The cat shot [dead] its
enemy.)

Common Inseparable Prefixes

Be

This one makes the verb take a direct object and can sometimes
function like the English “be-.”

kommen — to come
bekommen [+ direct object] — to receive
sprechen — to speak
besprechen — to discuss

Emp

This is a tricky one, but usually has to do with reception/perception.

fehlen — to miss, to lack

empfehlen — to recommend
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 finden — to find
empfinden — to feel, to perceive

Ent

This usually makes the verb do the opposite of its stem.

arten — to develop, to become

entarten — to degenerate
werten — to evaluate
entwerten — to void

Er

This can function in a couple different ways: Sometimes, it acts like

the English “re-” and other times it signals the completing of an
action, particularly if that action can end in death.

kennen — to know
erkennen — to recognize
schießen — to shoot
erschießen — to shoot dead

Ge

Unfortunately, this one seldom has a consistent translation. Also, it

can trick beginners into thinking it is a past participle. To check this
in some contexts, you can see whether there is already an
auxiliary haben or sein. If there isn’t, then it is probably a verb with
the inseparable prefix ge-.

gewinnen — to win

Sie gewinnt. (She wins.)

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 Notice that we see ge- but there is no auxiliary verb.

Sie hat gewonnen. (She won.)

Miss

Thankfully, this is an easy one to remember, as it functions similarly

to the English “mis-.”

brauchen — to need
missbrauchen — to misuse
trauen — to trust
misstrauen — to mistrust

Ver

When added, this one often, but not always, causes the verb to do
the opposite of its stem.

kaufen — to buy
verkaufen — to sell
bieten — to offer
verbieten — to forbid

Zer

Those with an appetite for destruction will easily remember that

zer- almost always causes a verb to signify zerstören (demolition or
destruction) of something.

reisen — to travel
zerreißen — to shred, tear up
beißen — to bite
zerbeißen — to gnaw, bite in two
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 Inseparable prefixes are going to be harder to find a consistent
translation for, although these patterns can help. As mentioned, the
only surefire way to succeed is to memorize, memorize, memorize!

3. Dual Prefixes

Speaking of memorization, the third type of prefix almost exclusively

requires memorization.

Dual prefixes take prepositions as the prefix, so knowing the

meaning of
prepositions like durch hinter (behind), über (above), um
(around), unter (down or below), wider (against) and wieder (again)
will guide you to translating the meaning of the verb.

The memorization for dual prefixes is not for meaning, however

(though memorizing their meanings certainly won’t hurt!). For dual
prefixes, you need to memorize whether the preposition is
inseparable or separable.

If the prefix is separable, it is stressed.

If it is inseparable, it is unstressed, the same way that one-way

prefixes function.

Learning to use the different types of prefixes will deepen your

speaking and writing abilities while also adding to your vocabulary.

As you use verbs with prefixes, you will notice patterns to help you
remember how the prefixes change the meanings of the verbs. And
once you notice these patterns, using German prefixes will become
much easier.

A good tip is to listen to these over and over. Once you know how the
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 prefixes should sound, they’ll come more naturally to you.

I definitely recommend Deutsche Welle as a starting point. On this

well-known German news website, you can find podcasts, videos
and other content to listen to native speakers using these prefixes in
action.

Another place where you can find authentic content is FluentU. This
language learning program teaches the language through videos
that use authentic German. Each video also has interactive captions.
This is a good way to practice the prefixes we’ve looked at today and
discover new ways to use them.

With resources like these, you can learn and practice German
prefixes on your own.

Once you have a good understanding of these prefixes, then it’s time
to use them! A good way to do this is by writing sentences that
feature what you want to learn. You’ll find that actually writing out
what you’re learning can help you to remember and learn the
information better.

The most important thing to remember is that there is never a

surefire way to “guess” the meaning of a verb with a prefix, and while
there are patterns, only practice will truly make perfect.

Viel Glück! (Good luck!)

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