All German word comparisons · Back to the topic overview
Meaning, sentence patterns and examples
| Word | Core meaning | Typical context | Grammar |
|---|---|---|---|
| bekommen | receive or get | a parcel, answer or new condition | bekam; hat bekommen in receiving sense |
| erhalten | receive; preserve | formal correspondence; conservation | erhielt; hat erhalten |
| werden | become | a condition, age or profession | wurde; ist geworden |
| kriegen | get or receive, informal | everyday conversation | kriegte; hat gekriegt |
bekommen
Meaning and usage: Use bekommen for receiving something or coming to have it. You can receive a reply, get a new job or develop an appetite. The latter meanings show why a single English receive gloss is not enough. Still, Ich bekomme müde is not the ordinary translation of I become tired.
Grammar: Inseparable be-; bekam, hat bekommen for receiving. The received item is accusative. The separate sense meaning agree with someone can take sein in the perfect; it is not the receiving pattern taught here.
Ich habe heute eine Antwort bekommen.
I received a reply today.
erhalten
Meaning and usage: Use erhalten for receive, particularly in written confirmations or formal correspondence. It also means maintain or preserve: a city can preserve a building. Look at the object before deciding which meaning applies.
Grammar: Inseparable er-; erhält, erhielt, hat erhalten. Receiving and preserving uses take accusative objects. No extra ge- appears in the participle.
Sie erhalten die Bestätigung per E-Mail.
You will receive the confirmation by email.
Die Stadt möchte das alte Gebäude erhalten.
The city wants to preserve the old building.
werden
Meaning and usage: Use werden plus an adjective or role to express becoming. It can also function as an auxiliary for future or passive constructions, which need separate grammar explanations. Here the focus is the change-of-state verb.
Grammar: Irregular: wird, wurde, ist geworden. Predicative adjectives have no adjective ending. A predicate noun is nominative; professions commonly appear without an article.
Nach dem langen Tag werde ich müde.
After the long day, I am getting tired.
Mara möchte Ärztin werden.
Mara wants to become a doctor.
kriegen
Meaning and usage: Use kriegen for get in informal conversation: a message, opportunity or item. It is common spoken German, not automatically rude. In a formal application or official email, bekommen or erhalten may be more suitable.
Grammar: Weak: kriegte, hat gekriegt. The received item is accusative. The word has additional informal senses, such as catching someone or managing to obtain a result.
Hast du meine Nachricht gekriegt?
Did you get my message?
Overlap and context
For receiving a reply, bekommen, erhalten and kriegen can describe the same event. Register is a useful guide, not a statement that erhalten always sounds bureaucratic. Ich bekomme Hunger expresses developing hunger, while Ich werde hungrig expresses becoming hungry. These illustrate related meanings with different grammar, not a universal ban on bekommen for every change of state.
Common mistakes
- Say Ich werde nervös, not Ich bekomme nervös.
- Do not translate erhalten as receive in a sentence about preserving a monument.
- Use ist geworden for become; hat geworden is incorrect in this construction.
Memory aid: For a parcel, think getting: bekommen/erhalten/kriegen. For a new adjective or role, think becoming: werden. Then adjust the receiving verb to the situation’s tone.
Try it
Complete: Nach drei Stunden Arbeit ___ ich langsam müde.
Show the answer
werde
Müde describes a developing state, so werden fits. Bekommen would need a noun object or another established construction rather than this adjective alone.