The modal verb "dürfen" in German

Meaning of "dürfen"

The verb "dürfen" means:

To be allowed to.

Wir dürfen keine Zeit verlieren
We can’t lose any time

Darf ich dich zum Essen einladen?
May I invite you to dinner?

When "Dürfen" is negated, it means “should not”.

Ihr dürft nicht so gemein zu anderen Kindern sein
You should not be so mean to other kids

Grammar of "dürfen"

"dürfen" is a modal verb. Which means that normally it needs another verb to complement its meaning.

Like the rest of the modal verbs, its auxiliary verb is haben.

"Dürfen" is an irregular verb

Conjugation of "dürfen"

Present simple (Präsens Indikativ)

Wie schnell darf man in Deutschland fahren?
How fast can you drive in Germany?

Dürfen wir uns vor dem Schlafen noch einen Film ansehen?
Can we see a movie before going to sleep?

Darf ich Ihnen eine Frage stellen?
Can I ask you a question?

Simple past (Präteritum)

Durftest du mit 18 fahren?
Were you allowed to drive at 18?

Als Kinder durften wir fast gar nichts
When we were children, we weren't allowed to do a lot

Perfect (Perfekt)

"Dürfen", just like the rest of the modal verbs, forms the Perfekt with the following structure:

haben + FULL VERB + dürfen

The Perfekt is rarely used with "dürfen"; it is common to use the Präteritum.

Subjunctive II (Konjunktiv II)

Participle (Partizip)

Imperative (Imperativ)

dürfen like the rest of modal verbs. It does not have an imperative.