When to use "bin"? (German)?

Question

I have been studying German for about 21/2 years now, but I'm still a little fuzzy about when to use "bin", or any other form of "to be", versus when I shouldn't. I know that you "to be" in German when you it as progressive present in English (like you can't say "I'm running" in German, but you can say "I run", "Ich renne"). But, I know you can say things like "Ich bin Krank" and "Ich bin 18" and stuff. So, when do you use it? Is it basically only for when you are talking about a state of being pretty much? Like, can you say "I am excited" in German, or is that using it in progressive? Any help would be great, thanks.
Sarah

Answer 1

I think this is what you want to know:

(1) Whenever you would have "am/is/are/was were + -ing" (am going, is talking, were reading), both the helping verb and the -ing drop out, and you just say the simple verb in whatever tense you want. He is sleeping-->He sleeps.

In a sentence like "I am excited" or "She is sick," there's no -ing, so you don't drop anything; you say ich bin or er ist or wir sind.

In paragraph (1), you are using the progressive in English, and there isn't an official progressive in German, although lots of people where I used ot live said things like "Ich war am Schreiben" for "I was writing").

In paragraph (2), you aren't using bin/bist/ist/etc as a helping verb but as a linking verb (kind of like an =), so you can't leave it out.

Answer 2

Well there's no progressive in German. So, you use bin as in English you use any form of 'to be' except progressive one.
ich bin achtzehn Jahre alt.
ich bin müde.
you also use bin when forming perfect tense with verbs of movement
ich bin aufgestanden.
ich bin nach Frankfurt geflogen.
in German there is no two words for different states of being, like in Spanish ser and estar, so you can use word sein in the appropriate form whenever you need it.
in English, you also say I AM ill and I AM 18, right? so it's almost the same.

Answer 3

BIN is an auxiliary verb that is used in compound verb sentences , and not just in simple sentences such as "Ich bin mude". Compound verb sentences are such as

"I have remained" - ich bin geblieben
"I have gone" :ich bin gegangen
I have been" ich bin gewesen
I have traveled ich bin gefahren

(bin is an auxiliary for verbs of motion and the exceptions
to be (sein - ich bin gewesen) and bleiben (to remain)

Not all compound sentences, however, use "bin" as the auxiliary verb. Most of them use forms of the verb to have - HABEN"
for example"

Ich habe gesehen (I have seen).
Your teacher should have distinguished all this when you learned the past tenses

Answer 4

i am mad(crazy) Ich bin verruct
You must be mad du musst verruct sein

probably doesnt help but whatever i know how to use 'bin' and ive been learning german for only 5 and a half months ;) and i'm 14

Answer 5

Sweetheart,
It is like the English word --am--.It is a word that you learn in your first week of German.

Answer 6

"bin" is mostly followed by nouns