Lassen in German
Use lassen to leave something, allow someone or get a job done for you, including the tricky perfect tense.
lassen covers several English verbs: leave, let, allow and "have something done".
With a second infinitive it works like a modal verb: lassen in position 2, the other verb at the end.
Conjugation of lassen
lassen is a strong verb: a → ä in du and er/sie/es. The du and er forms are identical.
Present tense
- ichlasse
- dulässt
- er · sie · eslässt
- wirlassen
- ihrlasst
- sie · Sielassen
Other key forms
- Simple pastließ
- Perfect (alone)hat gelassen
- Perfect + infinitivehat … machen lassen
- Command (du)lass!
- Command (ihr)lasst!
- Command (Sie)lassen Sie!
Lässt du das Fenster offen?
Are you leaving the window open?
Sie ließ ihren Koffer im Hotel.
She left her suitcase at the hotel.
Leave: something stays
Without another verb, lassen means to leave something somewhere or in a certain state.
Ich habe meinen Schirm im Zug gelassen.
I left my umbrella on the train.
Lass mich in Ruhe!
Leave me alone!
Let: allow someone to do something
lassen + person (accusative) + infinitive means to let someone do something. Lass uns … is the everyday way to say "let's".
Meine Eltern lassen mich allein reisen.
My parents let me travel alone.
Lass uns heute Abend ins Kino gehen!
Let's go to the cinema tonight!
Have something done
lassen + infinitive also means someone else does the job for you. The infinitive goes to the end.
- For yourself, add a dative: Ich lasse mir die Haare schneiden.
- Perfect uses a double infinitive: hat reparieren lassen.
- In the perfect, lassen replaces gelassen.
Ich lasse morgen mein Auto reparieren.
I'm having my car repaired tomorrow.
Wir haben das Bad renovieren lassen.
We had the bathroom renovated.
sich lassen: can be done
sich lassen + infinitive means something can (or can't) be done. It's a common alternative to the passive with können.
Das Fenster lässt sich nicht öffnen.
The window won't open.
Das lässt sich leicht erklären.
That's easy to explain.
Common mistakes
✗
Ich habe das Auto reparieren gelassen.✓ Ich habe das Auto reparieren lassen.
With an infinitive, the perfect uses lassen.
✗
Ich lasse reparieren mein Auto.✓ Ich lasse mein Auto reparieren.
The second infinitive goes to the end.
✗
Du lasst mich immer warten.✓ Du lässt mich immer warten.
du and er/sie/es take the umlaut.
✗
Ich lasse mich die Haare schneiden.✓ Ich lasse mir die Haare schneiden.
With a direct object, use the dative mir.
Questions learners ask
What does "Lass uns" mean in German?
Lass uns + infinitive means "let's": Lass uns gehen! With several friends it's Lasst uns gehen!
How do you say "I'm getting my hair cut" in German?
Ich lasse mir die Haare schneiden. lassen shows someone else does it, and mir shows it's for you.
Is it "gelassen" or "lassen" in the perfect?
gelassen when lassen stands alone: Ich habe es zu Hause gelassen. With another infinitive, use lassen: Ich habe es reparieren lassen.