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Kalle rettet einen kleinen Frosch aus dem trockenen Teich. Kalle rescues a little frog from the dried-up pond.

verb · B1

retten

[ˈʁɛtn̩]

to save, to rescue

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Other Examples

Grammar

Present
er/sie/es rettet What happens now or usually.
Simple past (Präteritum)
er/sie/es rettete The past in stories and in writing; in speech mostly with sein, haben and the modal verbs.
Perfect (Perfekt)
er/sie/es hat gerettet The past in conversation. Verbs of movement or change take "ist", most others "hat".

Conjugation

The verb in every person; under each table, when German uses it.

Indikativ
Person Präsens Präteritum Perfekt
ich retterettetehabe gerettet
du rettestrettetesthast gerettet
er/sie/es rettetrettetehat gerettet
wir rettenrettetenhaben gerettet
ihr rettetrettetethabt gerettet
sie/Sie rettenrettetenhaben gerettet
Präsens
What happens now or usually; with a time word also the future.
Präteritum
The past in stories and in writing; in speech mostly with sein, haben and the modal verbs.
Perfekt
The past in conversation.
More Tenses and Moods
Indikativ
Person Plusquamperfekt Futur I Futur II
ich hatte gerettetwerde rettenwerde gerettet haben
du hattest gerettetwirst rettenwirst gerettet haben
er/sie/es hatte gerettetwird rettenwird gerettet haben
wir hatten gerettetwerden rettenwerden gerettet haben
ihr hattet gerettetwerdet rettenwerdet gerettet haben
sie/Sie hatten gerettetwerden rettenwerden gerettet haben
Plusquamperfekt
What had happened before another moment in the past.
Futur I
Plans, promises and guesses about the future; often the Präsens is enough.
Futur II
What will be finished by a moment in the future, or a guess about the past.
Person Konjunktiv II
ich rettete
du rettetest
er/sie/es rettete
wir retteten
ihr rettetet
sie/Sie retteten
Konjunktiv II
Wishes, polite requests and what isn't real.

The same as the Präteritum, so German mostly says "würde" + infinitive instead: ich würde retten.

Person Imperativ
du rette!
ihr rettet!
Sie retten Sie!
Imperativ
Requests and instructions to du, ihr and Sie.

How the Word Is Built

rett root en ending

-en
the ending of the infinitive, the form of a verb in the dictionary.

Word family

die Rettungder Retter

In Otti's situations: Kalle cares about the climate, Bruno saves food from the bin

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