German reference
erklären
to explain
Regular · 13 form tables
Includes indicative, subjunctive I and II, and imperative forms. Separable verbs retain their word order in each form.
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Indicative
Present
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| ich | I explain |
| du | you explain |
| er/sie/es | he/she/it explains |
| wir | we explain |
| ihr | you (plural) explain |
| sie/Sie | they explain; you (formal) explain |
Simple past
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| ich | I explained |
| du | you explained |
| er/sie/es | he/she/it explained |
| wir | we explained |
| ihr | you (plural) explained |
| sie/Sie | they explained; you (formal) explained |
Compound past
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| ich | I explained; I have explained |
| du | you explained; you have explained |
| er/sie/es | he/she/it explained; he/she/it has explained |
| wir | we explained; we have explained |
| ihr | you (plural) explained; you (plural) have explained |
| sie/Sie | they explained; they have explained; you (formal) explained; you (formal) have explained |
Past perfect
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| ich | I had explained |
| du | you had explained |
| er/sie/es | he/she/it had explained |
| wir | we had explained |
| ihr | you (plural) had explained |
| sie/Sie | they had explained; you (formal) had explained |
Future
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| ich | I will explain |
| du | you will explain |
| er/sie/es | he/she/it will explain |
| wir | we will explain |
| ihr | you (plural) will explain |
| sie/Sie | they will explain; you (formal) will explain |
Future perfect
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| ich | I will have explained |
| du | you will have explained |
| er/sie/es | he/she/it will have explained |
| wir | we will have explained |
| ihr | you (plural) will have explained |
| sie/Sie | they will have explained; you (formal) will have explained |
Subjunctive
Subjunctive I
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| ich | (that) I explain |
| du | (that) you explain |
| er/sie/es | (that) he/she/it explains |
| wir | (that) we explain |
| ihr | (that) you (plural) explain |
| sie/Sie | (that) they explain; (that) you (formal) explain |
Subjunctive II
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| ich | I would explain |
| du | you would explain |
| er/sie/es | he/she/it would explain |
| wir | we would explain |
| ihr | you (plural) would explain |
| sie/Sie | they would explain; you (formal) would explain |
Past subjunctive II
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| ich | I would have explained |
| du | you would have explained |
| er/sie/es | he/she/it would have explained |
| wir | we would have explained |
| ihr | you (plural) would have explained |
| sie/Sie | they would have explained; you (formal) would have explained |
Would form
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| ich | I would explain |
| du | you would explain |
| er/sie/es | he/she/it would explain |
| wir | we would explain |
| ihr | you (plural) would explain |
| sie/Sie | they would explain; you (formal) would explain |
Past subjunctive I
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| ich | (reportedly) I have explained |
| du | (reportedly) you have explained |
| er/sie/es | (reportedly) he/she/it has explained |
| wir | (reportedly) we have explained |
| ihr | (reportedly) you (plural) have explained |
| sie/Sie | (reportedly) they have explained; (reportedly) you (formal) have explained |
Future subjunctive I
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| ich | (reportedly) I will explain |
| du | (reportedly) you will explain |
| er/sie/es | (reportedly) he/she/it will explain |
| wir | (reportedly) we will explain |
| ihr | (reportedly) you (plural) will explain |
| sie/Sie | (reportedly) they will explain; (reportedly) you (formal) will explain |
Imperative
Imperative
| Person, form or usage | Form and meaning |
|---|---|
| du | explain! |
| ihr | explain! (plural) |
| sie/Sie | explain! (formal) |
Additional forms
- Infinitive with zu
- Present participle
- Past participle
- Past infinitive
Forms from the Loquus reference. Only supplied forms are shown. Browse all German entries.