German · Everyday Verbs

"to sing" in German: singen

singen

Say it: ZING-enverb/ˈzɪŋən/

To sing in German is singen. Say Ich singe gern or Singst du mit?. Past forms include sang and gesungen.

Karaoke

Singst du das nächste Lied mit?
Are you singing along on the next song?
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How to pronounce singen

Say it

ZING-en

/ˈzɪŋən/

ZING-en. Soft s like English z. Soft -en.

"to sing" in German: quick reference

GermanEnglish
singento sing

Core verb.

ich singe / du singstI sing / you sing

Present.

sang / gesungensang / sung

Past forms.

mithsingento sing along

Karaoke and concerts.

How to use singen in real life

  1. 1Karaoke

    Singst du das nächste Lied mit?

    Are you singing along on the next song?

    Singst du…

  2. 2Choir

    Wir singen samstags im Chor.

    We sing in the choir on Saturdays.

    Singen present.

  3. 3Memory

    Gestern habe ich unter der Dusche gesungen.

    Yesterday I sang in the shower.

    Gesungen participle.

Mistakes English speakers make with singen

Incorrect: Ich habe gesingt.

Correct: Ich habe gesungen.

Past participle is gesungen.

Incorrect: Using der Gesang as the verb

Correct: Use singen

Gesang is a noun; the verb is singen.

Good to know

Karaoke nights and Karneval songs make singen a social verb. People also say mitsingen when everyone joins a chorus.

Try it in a ChatPal conversation

Choosing music in the car

  1. ChatPal

    Singen wir laut zu diesem Song?

    Shall we sing loudly to this song?

  2. You

    Klar. Ich singe die Strophe, du den Refrain.

    Sure. I'll sing the verse, you the chorus.

  3. ChatPal

    Gut. Singst du etwas höher?

    Good. Will you sing a bit higher?

  4. You

    Versuche ich. Sonst singen wir eine Oktave tiefer.

    I'll try. Otherwise we'll sing an octave lower.

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"to sing" in other languages

FAQ

Common questions about "to sing" in German

How do you conjugate singen?

Ich singe, du singst, er/sie singt; sang; gesungen.

Sing along?

Mitsingen.

Past participle?

Gesungen.

I like to sing?

Ich singe gern.

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