A SIMPLE TENSE – ADD ENDINGS TO A STEM THE IMPERFECT TENSE A SIMPLE TENSE – ADD ENDINGS TO A STEM
WEAK VERBS The same STEM is used as for the Present Tense, but obviously the ENDINGS are different
SPIELEN - to play Ich spielTE wir spielTEN Du spielTEST ihr spielTET Er spielTE sie spielTEN
STRONG VERBS These verbs have a special strong stem AND a different set of endings If you look carefully at the endings, they may seem familiar!
GEHEN - to go Ich ging wir gingEN Du gingST ihr gingT Er ging sie gingEN NB: There is NO ending added to the ‘ich’ and the ‘er’ parts of the verb Have you spotted why the endings look familiar?
The endings added to the strong stem to form the Imperfect are the same as the endings added to the usual stem to form the Present! That should HELP you, not confuse you! Less endings to learn must be a good plan!