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German vocabulary · Beginner
How do you say "to sleep" in German?
schlafen
In German, "to sleep" is schlafen.
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Pronunciation
SHLAH-fen. Long 'a' sound, stress on first syllable.
Grammar notes
Strong verb, past tense schlief, past participle geschlafen. Conjugates with haben.
Example sentence
Das Baby schläft im Bett.
The baby sleeps in the bed.
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How to remember schlafen
The 'schl' cluster at the start is purely German. Closing your eyes, you slip into sleep.
Related words
- drink trinken
- fly fliegen
- get up aufstehen
- make anrufen
- run laufen
- mail verschicken
- sit sitzen
- switch off ausschalten
- wear tragen
Browse all German words in the glossary.
Questions about schlafen
How do you say "to sleep" in German?
In German, "to sleep" is schlafen. It is a noun.
How is schlafen written in German?
schlafen is written using the standard German script.
How is schlafen used in a sentence?
Use schlafen as you would use the equivalent noun in English. For example: Das Baby schläft im Bett. (The baby sleeps in the bed.).
Where can I practice German words for free?
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"To sleep" in other languages
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