With regular verbs, the past participle usually begins with the prefix ge-; then comes the verb root, followed by a -t at the end.
| Infinitive | Past participle |
| machen | ge-mach-t |
| frühstücken | ge-frühstück-t |
| kochen | ge-koch-t |
If the verb root ends in -t or -d, an additional e is added. This extra e is also added after a cluster of consonants. Often, you will be able to identify when an e is necessary, as without it, the word would be hard to say.
| Infinitive | Past participle |
|
arbeiten |
ge-arbeit-et |
| öffnen | ge-öffn-et |
Some verbs make the past participle without ge-:
- Verbs which end in -ieren
- Verbs with inseparable prefixes, i.e. be-, ent-, er-, ver-, zer-
| Infinitive | Past participle |
|
fotografieren |
fotografier-t |
|
reservieren |
reservier-t |
| besuchen | besuch-t |
|
Grammatical terms in German: das Partizip II: The past participle is formed from a verb and resembles an adjective. It is used in a variety of grammatical structures, for example to form the present perfect tense. |