Simple Past of sein and haben (war, hatte)
In German, two of the most important past-tense forms to learn early are war (was/were) and hatte (had). Unlike most verbs — where German conversation uses the Perfekt — sein and haben almost always use the simple past (Präteritum) even in casual speech. You will hear these forms every single day.
Once you know all six forms of each verb, you can talk about where you were, how you felt, and what you had in the past. It is a small investment with a big payoff.
Conjugation of war (sein in the simple past)
The simple past stem of sein is war. Notice that ich and er/sie/es are identical — both are just war with no extra ending.
| Pronoun | Simple Past | English |
|---|---|---|
| ich | war | I was |
| du | warst | you were |
| er / sie / es | war | he / she / it was |
| wir | waren | we were |
| ihr | wart | you all were |
| sie / Sie | waren | they / you (formal) were |
Key pattern: ich and er/sie/es share war (no ending); du adds -st; wir/sie/Sie add -en; ihr adds -t.
Conjugation of hatte (haben in the simple past)
The simple past stem of haben is hatt-. Again, ich and er/sie/es share the same form: hatte.
| Pronoun | Simple Past | English |
|---|---|---|
| ich | hatte | I had |
| du | hattest | you had |
| er / sie / es | hatte | he / she / it had |
| wir | hatten | we had |
| ihr | hattet | you all had |
| sie / Sie | hatten | they / you (formal) had |
The endings mirror those of war-: no ending for ich/er/sie/es, -st for du, -en for wir/sie/Sie, and -t for ihr.
Why Not Use Perfekt Here?
For most verbs, spoken German uses the Perfekt: Ich habe gegessen (I ate). But sein and haben are exceptions — native speakers almost always prefer the simple past forms war and hatte, even in everyday conversation.
| Situation | Natural German | Awkward alternative |
|---|---|---|
| I was tired | Ich war müde. | Ich bin müde gewesen. |
| She had a car | Sie hatte ein Auto. | Sie hat ein Auto gehabt. |
Stick to war and hatte — they are correct, natural, and far simpler.
📖 Examples
Ich war gestern sehr müde.
I was very tired yesterday.
Du warst nicht zu Hause.
You were not at home.
Er war krank.
He was sick.
Wir waren im Urlaub.
We were on vacation.
Ich hatte keine Zeit.
I had no time.
Sie hatte ein neues Fahrrad.
She had a new bicycle.
Ihr hattet viel Glück.
You all had a lot of luck.
Das Wetter war wunderschön.
The weather was beautiful.
⚠️ Common Mistakes
Ich war Hunger.Ich hatte Hunger.
German expresses hunger (and thirst, time, fun) with haben, not sein. Say 'Ich hatte Hunger' — literally 'I had hunger' — just as you say 'Ich habe Hunger' in the present.
Du war sehr nett.Du warst sehr nett.
The du-form always needs the -st ending in the simple past: warst, not war. Using war for du is one of the most common errors English speakers make.
Wir war im Park.Wir waren im Park.
The wir-form is waren (with -en ending). War is only for ich, er, sie, and es — never for wir.
Ich habe gehabt kein Geld.Ich hatte kein Geld.
For haben in the past, use the simple past form hatte. The Perfekt construction 'habe gehabt' is grammatically possible but sounds very unnatural and is almost never used.
✏️ Exercises
Test your understanding. Click an option or type your answer, then check.
Choose the correct form: Ich ___ gestern krank.
Choose the correct form: Er ___ kein Geld.
Choose the correct form: Wir ___ im Urlaub.
Choose the correct form: Du ___ sehr müde.
Choose the correct form: Ihr ___ viel Glück.
Which sentence is grammatically correct?
Ich ___ gestern sehr müde. (sein)
Wir ___ viel Spaß. (haben)
Du ___ sehr nett zu mir. (sein)
Er ___ kein Auto. (haben)