benötigen

Benötigen is a German verb meaning to need or to require. It is a transitive verb that governs a direct object in the accusative. In everyday language it is more formal than brauchen, and it often appears in written or professional contexts. For example: “Ich benötige Ihre Unterlagen” (I need your documents).

Etymology and nuances: benö-tigen derives from the adjective nötig (necessary) with the prefix be-, forming a verb that denotes a need or requirement. The prefix be- in this class of verbs does not indicate reflexive action but rather a transitive, causative or distributive meaning. The register of benö-tigen tends to be more formal or technical, and some speakers prefer brauchen in casual speech.

Conjugation and usage: Benötigen is regular in its conjugation as a weak verb. Present tense forms are: ich benötige, du benötigst, er/sie/es benötigt, wir benötigen, ihr benötigt, sie/Sie benötigen. The simple past (Präteritum) is: ich benötigte, du benötigtest, er benötigte, wir benötigten, ihr benötigtet, sie benötigten. The perfect tense uses haben: ich habe benötigt, du hast benötigt, er hat benötigt, wir haben benötigt, ihr habt benötigt, sie haben benötigt. The verb takes a direct object in the accusative, e.g., “Wir benötigen mehr Zeit.”

Typical usage notes: Use benötigen for situations that are essential or obligatory rather than merely desired. It often appears with professional or formal content (e.g., requests, official statements) and can occur with phrases like “benötigen Sie …?” as a polite question in the Sie-form. In contrast, brauchen is common in colloquial speech and with less formal nuance.