🛍️

How to Say ‘I bought it.’ in German

Ich habe sie gekauft.

ikh HAH-beh zee geh-KOWFT

[ikh HAH-beh zee geh-KOWFT]

💬 Usage Tip: For past events, habe comes second and the ge- word goes to the end. Swap in: Ich habe sie getragen "I wore it".

Phrase Breakdown

Ich habe sie

ikh HAH-beh zee

I have it

'habe' is the helping verb for the perfect tense.

Example

Ich habe sie gesehen.

I have seen her.

Words in this phrase

Ich

[ikh]

The pronoun 'ich' in nominative form.

Example

Ich bin da.

I am here.

habe

[HAH-beh]

have

Form of 'haben' used with 'ich'.

Example

Ich habe einen Plan.

I have a plan.

sie

[zee]

it / her

Accusative pronoun for a feminine noun, translated as 'it' for objects.

Example

Die Lampe ist schön, ich kaufe sie.

The lamp is nice, I'll buy it.

gekauft.

geh-KOWFT

bought.

This is the past participle of 'kaufen'. Stress the second syllable: ge-KAUFT.

Example

Was hast du gekauft?

What did you buy?

Words in this phrase

gekauft

[geh-KOWFT]

bought

The past participle of 'kaufen' (to buy). You use it with 'haben' to say that someone bought something.

Example

Ich habe ein neues Kleid gekauft.

I bought a new dress.

Guides for German learners

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