Simple past of sein and haben
A2 · Elementary · Cases & Verbs
The rule
war, warst, war, waren…; hatte, hattest, hatte…
How it works
The simple past (Präteritum) of sein is war, waren, and of haben is hatte, hatten. These two forms are used even in conversation, because they are so common, as in Es war schön (It was nice) and Ich hatte keine Zeit (I had no time). They are also the easiest way to start writing narratives in German.
When to use it
Use the simple past (Präteritum) of sein and haben in written German and in common spoken phrases like "Es war …".
Use cases
- Describing the past in a story: Es war einmal ein König
- Describing a past state: Wir hatten Glück
- Giving a short report on yesterday
Examples
- Ich war krank – I was ill
- Wir hatten Glück – We were lucky
- Das Wetter war gestern schlecht. – The weather was bad yesterday.
- Ich hatte keinen Hunger. – I was not hungry.
- Ihr wart sehr laut. – You were very loud.
Common mistake
Using the perfect ("Ich bin gewesen") instead of the simple past for common verbs like sein.
Memory tip
war, hatte: these two are used even in conversation, so learn them first.
Read the wider picture in our guide: German Verbs and Word Order: Tenses, Modals and Sentence Structure.