Wachsen ("to grow") is a strong verb with the a → ä vowel change in the present, and it takes sein in the Perfekt because growing is a gradual change of state, not an action done to an object. English uses "grow" both intransitively ("the plant grew") and transitively ("I grow tomatoes"); German splits these — wachsen covers only the intransitive sense of getting bigger, while "to grow something" is anbauen or züchten. There is also a separate weak verb wachsen meaning "to wax," covered briefly below — do not let the spelling fool you.
Principal parts
| Infinitive | Präteritum | Partizip II (auxiliary) |
|---|---|---|
| wachsen | wuchs | gewachsen (ist) |
Read this as wachsen – wuchs – ist gewachsen. The vowel goes a → u → a, the Ablaut pattern shared with waschen (wusch) and schaffen (schuf). The auxiliary is sein.
Präsens (present)
The stem vowel takes an umlaut in the du and er/sie/es forms. Because the stem already ends in -s, the du-form does not add an extra -s: it is simply wächst, identical to the er-form.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | wachse |
| du | wächst |
| er / sie / es | wächst |
| wir | wachsen |
| ihr | wachst |
| sie / Sie | wachsen |
Mein Sohn wächst so schnell, dass keine Hose mehr passt.
My son grows so fast that no pair of trousers fits anymore. (informal)
Im Schatten wachsen die Tomaten nur langsam.
In the shade the tomatoes grow only slowly.
Präteritum (simple past)
The Präteritum stem is wuchs. It is fully alive in written and narrative German.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | wuchs |
| du | wuchsest |
| er / sie / es | wuchs |
| wir | wuchsen |
| ihr | wuchst |
| sie / Sie | wuchsen |
Die Stadt wuchs in den Nachkriegsjahren rasant.
The city grew rapidly in the postwar years. (written/historical register)
Perfekt (present perfect)
Built with the present of sein plus the participle gewachsen. Growth is a change of state, so wachsen sits firmly in the sein-group — never hat gewachsen.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| ich | bin gewachsen |
| du | bist gewachsen |
| er / sie / es | ist gewachsen |
| wir | sind gewachsen |
| ihr | seid gewachsen |
| sie / Sie | sind gewachsen |
Du bist ja seit dem Sommer enorm gewachsen!
Wow, you've grown a lot since the summer! (informal; ist/bist gewachsen, not hat/hast)
For the underlying rule, see haben vs sein in the Perfekt.
Plusquamperfekt (past perfect)
Past form of the auxiliary (war) + gewachsen.
Bis zu seiner Rückkehr war der Baum auf zehn Meter gewachsen.
By the time he returned, the tree had grown to ten metres.
Imperativ (commands)
The imperative is rare with wachsen (you cannot really command something to grow), and unusually it does not umlaut: it stays wachs(e)! Stem-umlaut a → ä disappears in the imperative, just as with fahren (fahr!) and tragen (trag!).
| Addressee | Form |
|---|---|
| du | wachs(e) |
| ihr | wachst |
| Sie | wachsen Sie |
Wachs endlich und benimm dich wie ein Erwachsener!
Grow up already and behave like an adult! (informal; note no umlaut: wachs, not wächs)
Usage, meaning, and government
Wachsen is intransitive: things grow on their own. To express growing by an amount, use um; to express growing to a size, use auf:
Die Wirtschaft ist im letzten Jahr um drei Prozent gewachsen.
The economy grew by three percent last year. (um + accusative for the amount of increase)
Ihre Haare sind ihr inzwischen bis zur Hüfte gewachsen.
Her hair has grown down to her hips by now. (bis zu + dative for the endpoint)
The key contrast for English speakers: you cannot say Ich wachse Tomaten for "I grow tomatoes." That sentence requires a verb that takes an object — anbauen (cultivate) or züchten (breed/grow selectively):
Wir bauen auf dem Balkon Kräuter und Tomaten an.
We grow herbs and tomatoes on the balcony. (anbauen, not wachsen, for the transitive sense)
The weak homograph: wachsen "to wax"
A different verb, also spelled wachsen, means "to wax" (skis, a floor, a moustache). It is weak and takes haben: ich wachse, ich wachste, ich habe gewachst. Context makes the two impossible to confuse, but note the different participle: gewachst (waxed) versus gewachsen (grown).
Vor dem Rennen hat er seine Skier frisch gewachst.
Before the race he freshly waxed his skis. (weak verb: hat gewachst)
Collocations and prefixed verbs
The most important prefixed form is aufwachsen ("to grow up"), separable and taking sein. It is the standard way to talk about where someone was raised.
| Expression | English |
|---|---|
| aufwachsen (ist) | to grow up (be raised) |
| zusammenwachsen | to grow together, merge, knit (a bone) |
| nachwachsen | to grow back (hair, plants) |
| jemandem über den Kopf wachsen | to get too much for someone to handle |
| an einer Aufgabe wachsen | to grow through a challenge |
Ich bin auf dem Land aufgewachsen, mitten in den Bergen.
I grew up in the countryside, right in the mountains. (aufwachsen, sein)
Die Arbeit ist mir langsam über den Kopf gewachsen.
The workload slowly got to be too much for me. (idiom)
Common Mistakes
❌ Die Bäume haben in diesem Jahr stark gewachsen.
Incorrect auxiliary — wachsen takes sein, because growing is a change of state.
✅ Die Bäume sind in diesem Jahr stark gewachsen.
The trees grew a lot this year.
❌ Mein Opa wachst Gemüse im Garten.
Wrong verb and form — wachsen is intransitive; to grow something, use anbauen.
✅ Mein Opa baut Gemüse im Garten an.
My grandpa grows vegetables in the garden.
❌ Du wachsst aber schnell!
Incorrect du-form — the stem already ends in -s, so it is wächst with an umlaut, not wachsst.
✅ Du wächst aber schnell!
You're growing so fast! (informal)
❌ Ich bin in Berlin gewachst.
Wrong participle and verb — gewachst means 'waxed'; 'grew up' is aufgewachsen.
✅ Ich bin in Berlin aufgewachsen.
I grew up in Berlin.
Key Takeaways
- Principal parts: wachsen – wuchs – ist gewachsen (Perfekt with sein).
- Present a → ä: ich wachse but du/er wächst — the du-form takes no extra -s.
- Wachsen is intransitive; "to grow something" is anbauen or züchten.
- aufwachsen ("to grow up") is the everyday verb for where you were raised.
- A separate weak verb wachsen = "to wax," participle gewachst with haben.
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