fürchtest

Fürchtest is the second-person singular present tense form of the German verb fürchten, meaning to fear or to be afraid. It is used when addressing someone informally with du. For example, du fürchtest dich vor Spinnen (you are afraid of spiders) or du fürchtest den kommenden Sturm (you fear the approaching storm). The verb can take a direct object, as in ich fürchte dich nicht (I do not fear you), or govern a clause introduced by dass, as in ich fürchte, dass du zu spät kommst (I fear that you will be late). In many contexts, for a personal fear the reflexive form is used: ich fürchte mich vor etwas (I am afraid of something).

Conjugation and forms are regular for this verb. The key present-tense forms are: ich fürchte, du fürchtest, er/sie/es fürchtet, wir fürchten, ihr fürchtet, sie/Sie fürchten. The imperative forms are Fürchte dich! for the singular familiar, and Fürchtet euch! for the plural, with context and tone guiding the exact usage.

Usage notes: the phrase ich fürchte often introduces cautious or softened statements, similar to the English “I fear that …” or “I’m afraid that …,” and can be used to express concern about future events. In contrast, the noun die Furcht or die Angst denotes the general feeling of fear, while befürchten is a related verb meaning to fear in a more speculative or cautious sense (Ich befürchte, dass …).

Etymology: the verb derives from Old High German furchten and has cognates in related Germanic languages, with English fear and Dutch vrezen sharing a common ancestral root.