All German word comparisons · Back to the topic overview
Meaning, sentence patterns and examples
| Word | Core meaning | Typical context | Grammar |
|---|---|---|---|
| kaufen | buy | a particular item or purchase | kaufte; hat gekauft |
| verkaufen | sell | giving ownership for payment | inseparable ver-; hat verkauft |
| einkaufen | shop or purchase supplies | groceries, errands or procurement | separable ein-; hat eingekauft |
kaufen
Meaning and usage: Use kaufen when the purchased item is central: a ticket, laptop or gift. The verb can also describe where you regularly buy things without naming a particular item. It does not require a completed transaction whenever it appears in the present tense.
Grammar: Weak verb: kauft, kaufte, hat gekauft. The purchased item is accusative. Jemandem etwas kaufen uses a dative beneficiary. Für + accusative can name a price or beneficiary; bei + dative names a seller.
Ich kaufe meiner Schwester ein Buch.
I am buying my sister a book.
Wir haben die Fahrkarten online gekauft.
We bought the tickets online.
verkaufen
Meaning and usage: Use verkaufen from the seller’s perspective. The seller gives someone an item in exchange for payment. In sich gut verkaufen, the subject is a product that sells well; that does not mean the product is buying anything.
Grammar: Inseparable ver-: verkauft, verkaufte, hat verkauft. The item is accusative; the buyer can be dative or an + accusative. Do not insert ge- into the participle.
Lea verkauft ihr altes Fahrrad an einen Nachbarn.
Lea is selling her old bicycle to a neighbor.
Das neue Wörterbuch verkauft sich gut.
The new dictionary is selling well.
einkaufen
Meaning and usage: Use einkaufen for the shopping activity or obtaining supplies. Ich gehe einkaufen leaves the purchases unspecified. Ich kaufe Lebensmittel ein names them. Commercial procurement and other extended uses also exist, so the verb is not restricted to a supermarket trip.
Grammar: Separable ein-: Ich kaufe ein; kaufte ein; hat eingekauft. When an infinitive uses zu, write einzukaufen. An object, when stated, is accusative.
Wir kaufen heute für die ganze Woche ein.
We are doing our shopping for the whole week today.
Ich habe Gemüse und Reis eingekauft.
I bought vegetables and rice.
Overlap and context
Ich kaufe Gemüse and Ich kaufe Gemüse ein can describe the same purchase. The second places it within shopping or stocking up. Do not make quantity a strict dividing rule: one item can be bought while shopping, and kaufen can cover many items. Verkäufer and Käufer may describe the same transaction, but verkaufen and kaufen assign different roles to the subject.
Common mistakes
- Do not write Ich einkaufe heute; say Ich kaufe heute ein.
- Do not say einkaufen never takes an object.
- Use hat verkauft, not hat geverkauft, in the perfect tense.
Memory aid: Follow the item: the buyer kauft, the seller verkauft. Add ein when the focus is the shopping or supply-gathering activity; remember the prefix moves in a simple main clause.
Try it
You spent the morning getting groceries. Complete with the shopping verb: Ich habe heute Morgen ___.
Show the answer
eingekauft
Einkaufen describes the activity without a named object. Kaufen would normally need clearer purchase context in this short sentence; verkaufen would mean you sold something.