sein (to be) and haben (to have) are irregular, very frequent and needed in almost every conversation. They also help to build the past tense later, so it pays to know them perfectly.
Both verbs are irregular, so the forms have to be learnt by heart. sein is irregular in every person; haben only in the du and er/sie/es forms, where the b disappears.
| Person | sein | haben |
|---|---|---|
| ich | bin | habe |
| du | bist | hast |
| er / sie / es | ist | hat |
| wir | sind | haben |
| ihr | seid | habt |
| sie / Sie | sind | haben |
Watch the spelling of seid (you are, plural) – it is different from the preposition seit (since), although both sound the same.
You use sein to say who or what someone is, where they come from and what they are like.
After sein the adjective has no ending: Das Essen ist scharf. (The food is spicy.)
haben is used for possession and family, and the thing you have is in the accusative: Ich habe einen Bruder und eine Schwester. Hast du ein Auto?
Some ideas use haben in German where English uses to be. These are worth learning as fixed phrases:
| German | English |
|---|---|
| Ich habe Hunger. | I am hungry. |
| Ich habe Durst. | I am thirsty. |
| Hast du Zeit? | Are you free? |
| Wir haben Angst. | We are afraid. |
| Sie hat Recht. | She is right. |
| Er hat Geburtstag. | It is his birthday. |
Age, however, uses sein, just as in English: Ich bin 28 Jahre alt. Never say Ich habe 28 Jahre, which is a common mistake for speakers of Spanish or French.
Both verbs are also helper verbs for the past. Ich habe gegessen (I have eaten) and Ich bin gefahren (I have travelled) form the perfect tense, and the short past forms war (was) and hatte (had) are used every day: Gestern war ich krank. Ich hatte Fieber.
To ask about these verbs, put them first: Bist du müde? Haben Sie einen Termin? With a question word, they come second: Wie alt bist du? Was hast du da? Practise the forms aloud with sentences about yourself – your name, your city, your family – and they will soon become automatic.
Ask yourself whether English uses to be with a noun such as hunger, thirst or fear. If it does, German usually switches to haben plus the noun: Ich habe Hunger, but Ich bin hungrig with the adjective is also correct. With an adjective, German keeps sein: Ich bin müde. Er ist krank. Wir sind fertig.
| Not quite | Correct | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Ich habe 30 Jahre alt. | Ich bin 30 Jahre alt. | Age is expressed with sein in German. |
| Ich bin Hunger. | Ich habe Hunger. | Hunger, Durst, Angst and Zeit go with haben. |
| Ihr seit sehr nett. | Ihr seid sehr nett. | The verb form is seid with d; seit with t means 'since'. |
| Er habt einen Hund. | Er hat einen Hund. | The er/sie/es form of haben is hat. |
1. Ich ___ aus Hyderabad.
2. ___ du Geschwister?
3. Wir ___ heute keine Zeit.
4. Wie alt ___ deine Tochter?
5. Ihr ___ sehr pünktlich!
6. Mein Mann ___ Durst.
7. Frau Kumar, ___ Sie verheiratet?
8. Du ___ Recht, das Restaurant ist sehr gut.
Related grammar: The present tense, Personal pronouns, The accusative case.
Back to the grammar reference or to the A1 lessons.
Original practice questions written by the Desi European Tales editorial team; they are not the official exam questions. Checked 1 November 2026.
Related: German grammar reference · German A1 lessons · The present tense
