gabt

Gabt is the second-person plural simple past tense form of the German verb geben, meaning “to give.” It is the Präteritum form used with the subject ihr (you all). The form gabt derives from the stem gab- plus the typical Präteritum ending -t for the second-person plural.

Conjugation and forms related to geben in the Präteritum include: ich gab, du gabst, er/sie/es gab, wir gaben, ihr gabt, sie/Sie gaben. This tense is most commonly encountered in formal writing, narrative prose, or historical accounts rather than in everyday spoken German, where the Perfekt (haben + gegeben) is more frequently used for past actions.

Usage and examples: In historical or literary contexts, one might encounter sentences like, “Ihr gabt mir drei hilfreiche Hinweise.” In modern spoken German, speakers often replace the Präteritum with the Perfekt, saying, “Ihr habt mir drei hilfreiche Hinweise gegeben.” The Präteritum form gabt is primarily associated with written narration or older texts and tends to appear less in contemporary casual speech, especially in southern German varieties where the Perfekt dominates.

Etymology and notes: Gabt comes from the verb geben, whose past tense forms have irregular vowels in the stem (gab-). In standard German grammar, gabt functions as a grammatical marker rather than a lexical item beyond the meaning “gave (you all).” It is one of several irregular preterite endings that mark person and number in the German past tense.