brennen
German, verb
brennen is spelled B-R-E-N-N-E-N (7 letters) and appears 12 times per million words in written German, the 5,929th most frequent German word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Brennen is a German verb meaning “to burn; to light on fire” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). With a capital, Brennen is a different word: “gerund of brennen”. The German Wiktionary defines it as “in Flammen stehen, dem Feuer ausgesetzt sein”.
What does brennen mean in English?
verb
- 1
to burn; to light on fire
Ich beobachtete, wie das Haus brannte.
- 2
to burn; to be on fire
Mein Haus brennt!
- 3
to have a strong affection for; to be affectionate
Ich brenne darauf sie zu besuchen!
- 4
to be lit, to be on (of a light or lamp)
Das Licht in der Küche brannte noch immer.
- 5
to irritate; to induce pain or another painful sensation; to bite; to sting
Die Zwiebeln brennen in meinen Augen!
- 6
to smart; to sting (a sore or wound)
- 7
to fire; to bake; to kiln (tiles and pottery)
Dachziegel werden im Brennofen gebrannt.
- 8
to distil (alcoholic beverages such as schnapps)
noun
- 1
neutergerund of brennen
Source: English Wiktionary, German section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How German dictionaries define it
verb: 1. in Flammen stehen, dem Feuer ausgesetzt sein 2. für jemanden/etwas eine Zuneigung empfinden 3. brennbar sein 4. in Betrieb sein
The definition in the German Wiktionary, in German.
Source: German Wiktionary, dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of brennen
- brennt present singular third-person
- brannte past
- gebrannt participle past
- brennte past subjunctive
- haben auxiliary
- brennend participle present
- brenne first-person indicative present
- brennst indicative present second-person
- brennest second-person singular subjunctive
- brennet plural second-person subjunctive
- brannten first-person indicative plural
- brennten first-person formal plural
- branntest indicative preterite second-person
- branntet indicative plural preterite
- brenntest formal rare second-person
- brenntet formal plural rare
- brenn imperative second-person singular
- habe gebrannt first-person indicative multiword-construction
Source: English Wiktionary and German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
English words that translate to brennen
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is brennen in German?
brennen appears 12 times per million words in written German.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).