Personal pronouns and sein
Introduce people and say who or what they are.
The rule
Choose the pronoun for the person or thing, then match sein to it. Formal Sie means “you” and always takes sind.
ich bin · du bist · er/sie/es ist · wir sind · ihr seid · sie/Sie sind
A subject pronoun tells us who or what the sentence is about. German normally states the subject explicitly: Ich bin müde. The form of the verb must agree with that subject.
Use ich for the speaker. Use du for one familiar person and ihr for two or more familiar people. Use formal Sie for one or several people when politeness, distance, or a professional situation requires it. Formal Sie is always capitalized.
The third-person pronouns er, sie, and es can refer to people, but they also replace nouns according to grammatical gender: der Tisch → er, die Lampe → sie, das Buch → es. This does not mean the object has a biological sex.
Complete present-tense conjugation of sein
Notice the singular group bin–bist–ist and the plural group sind–seid–sind.
| Subject | sein | English | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| ich | bin | I am | Ich bin bereit. |
| du | bist | you are | Du bist pünktlich. |
| er / sie / es | ist | he / she / it is | Sie ist Ärztin. |
| wir | sind | we are | Wir sind hier. |
| ihr | seid | you are | Ihr seid nett. |
| sie / Sie | sind | they / you are | Sind Sie neu hier? |
Personal pronouns at a glance
The English word you has three common German equivalents. Choose by number, familiarity, and formality.
| Person | German | English | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st singular | ich | I | the speaker |
| 2nd singular informal | du | you | one friend, child, family member |
| 3rd singular masculine | er | he / it | male person or masculine noun |
| 3rd singular feminine | sie | she / it | female person or feminine noun |
| 3rd singular neuter | es | it | neuter noun, child, situation |
| 1st plural | wir | we | speaker plus another person |
| 2nd plural informal | ihr | you | two or more familiar people |
| 3rd plural | sie | they | people or things already mentioned |
| formal singular/plural | Sie | you | polite or professional address |
How sentence type changes the position of sein
| Sentence type | Structure | German | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Statement | subject + sein + rest | Du bist müde. | You are tired. |
| Yes/no question | sein + subject + rest | Bist du müde? | Are you tired? |
| W-question | W-word + sein + subject | Warum bist du müde? | Why are you tired? |
German examples with English meanings
Ich bin neu hier.
I am new here.
ich → bin
Bist du müde?
Are you tired?
du → bist
Frau Keller ist Lehrerin. Sie ist sehr freundlich.
Ms Keller is a teacher. She is very friendly.
Sind Sie Herr Weber?
Are you Mr Weber?
formal Sie → sind
Das Wetter ist schön. Es ist warm.
The weather is nice. It is warm.
das Wetter → es
Wir sind heute in Berlin.
We are in Berlin today.
wir → sind
Seid ihr schon fertig?
Are you all finished already?
informal plural
Meine Freunde sind im Café. Sie sind müde.
My friends are in the café. They are tired.
plural sie → sind
Mia, bist du fertig?
Mia, are you ready?
Kinder, seid ihr fertig?
Children, are you ready?
Frau Klein, sind Sie fertig?
Ms Klein, are you ready?
Nora ist neu. Sie ist aus Bonn.
Nora is new. She is from Bonn.
Nora und Tim sind neu. Sie sind aus Bonn.
Nora and Tim are new. They are from Bonn.
Sind Sie Frau Brandt?
Are you Ms Brandt?
Ich bin Studentin.
I am a student.
Wir sind aus Indien.
We are from India.
Das Handy ist in der Tasche.
The phone is in the bag.
Ihr seid sehr freundlich.
You are very friendly.
Common mistakes
Incorrect: Ich ist müde.
Correct: Ich bin müde.
The sein form for ich is bin.
Incorrect: sie sind nett. (formal)
Correct: Sie sind nett.
Formal Sie is capitalized.
Incorrect: Wir seid bereit.
Correct: Wir sind bereit.
wir pairs with sind; seid belongs only to ihr.
Incorrect: Wo du bist?
Correct: Wo bist du?
In a direct W-question, the conjugated verb comes immediately after the W-word.
Details and useful distinctions
Lowercase sie can mean she or they. The verb resolves the meaning: sie ist means she is, while sie sind means they are. Capitalized Sie means formal you and also takes sind.
sein is irregular: its forms do not come from one predictable stem. Learn the whole conjugation as a spoken sequence, then practise the forms inside complete sentences.
In a statement, the conjugated verb is normally the second sentence element: Ich bin heute müde. In a yes/no question, it moves to the front: Bist du müde? In a W-question, it follows the question word: Wo bist du?
Use du with one person you address informally. Use ihr when you address several people informally. Use Sie in formal or polite situations, regardless of whether you address one person or a group.
German speakers may explicitly offer the informal form with Wollen wir uns duzen? Until that happens, Sie is the safer choice in many professional or service situations.
Lowercase sie means she with ist and they with sind. Capitalized Sie means formal you and also uses sind. At the beginning of a sentence, capitalization alone cannot distinguish they from formal you, so context does the work.
Read the subject and verb together as one unit: sie ist, sie sind, Sie sind. This prevents translation word by word.
sein links the subject to information about identity or description. It does not express an action. German often omits the article before a profession after sein: Er ist Lehrer; Sie ist Ärztin.
For origin, use sein + aus. For location, use sein with a place expression. These chunks are immediately useful in introductions and everyday conversations.
Practise this grammar
Learn sein as three sound groups: bin/bist/ist, sind/seid/sind. Say the full chain aloud until it feels rhythmic.
Open Personal pronouns and sein exercises →
For source references and editorial level notes, see the grammar reference. You can report a correction if an explanation or example seems wrong.