German

Verb

bleiben ‎(class 1 strong, third-person singular simple present bleibt, past tense blieb, past participle geblieben, past subjunctive bliebe, auxiliary sein)

1. (intransitive) to remain (to continue to be)
   • 1929, Kurt Tucholsky, Das Lächeln der Mona Lisa (Sammelband), Rowohlt Verlag, page 239:

     Um populär zu werden, kann man seine eigene Meinung behalten. Um populär zu bleiben, weniger.

     In order to become popular, one can keep one’s own opinion. In order to stay popular, less so.

   Er blieb sein ganzes Leben ein glühender Anhänger der Monarchie.

   “He remained a devoted supporter of the monarchy for all his life.”

2. (intransitive, + infinitive) to keep (on); to continue (see usage notes below)

   Ich bleibe noch ein bischen liegen.

   “I'll keep lying here for a bit.”

3. (intransitive) to stay; to remain in a place

   Du kannst ja schon fahren, aber ich bleibe noch.

   “Feel free to leave, but I'm staying some more.”

4. (intransitive) to be; to be stuck; implying tardiness

   Wo bleibst du? Wir sind schon seit über einer Stunde da.

   “Where are you? We arrived more than an hour ago.”

5. (intransitive, + dative) to be left for someone

   Was bleibt ihm jetzt noch, wo seine Frau gestorben ist?

   “What does he have left now his wife has died?” (literally: What is left for him...)

6. (intransitive, + bei) to stick with; to stay with

   Ich hab’s ihm erklärt, aber er bleibt bei seiner Meinung.

   “I’ve explained it to him, but he sticks with his opinion.”

Usage notes

• (keep on): The construction bleiben + infinitive is only possible with certain verbs that describe a position. These are stehen ‎(“to stand”), sitzen ‎(“to sit”), liegen ‎(“to lie”), and synonyms thereof. The construction is also heard with wohnen ‎(“to dwell”) and leben ‎(“to live”), though this may not be used by all speakers.

Conjugation

Derived terms