Ways to say it
| German | IPA |
|---|---|
| gehören | /ɡəˈhøːʁən/ /ɡəˈhøːɐ̯n/ |
| gehören zu | /ɡəˈhøːʁən t͡sə/ (word by word) |
The verb is used to express that something is the property of someone. In an informal context, if you want to say someone is 'there' or is 'part of' something, you might use the phrase Dabei sein.
Which one should you use?
There is a distinction between the two forms based on what is being expressed. Use gehören alone to indicate legal ownership. Use gehören zu to indicate membership in a group or being a constituent part of a set.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Southern Germany, particularly Bavaria, people often use the phrase Dazua g'höria to mean 'to belong'. In Austrian German, the phrase Dazua g'hern is commonly used to mean 'to belong'.
How does it change in a sentence?
gehören is a regular weak verb. When expressing ownership, it always takes the dative case. The third-person singular form of the verb is gehört.
How do you pronounce it?
/ɡəˈhøːʁən/
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly use the accusative case with gehören.
Did you know?
- The German verb gehören is a distant cousin to the English word 'hear'. They both trace back to a common ancestor meaning to listen or pay attention.
Examples in context
- Sie gehören zu ihm.They belong to him.This sentence is useful for showing how to use gehören zu to express belonging to someone.Tatoeba #8656348 by Melang, translation #8173813 by Amastan
- Da gehören Sie hin.That's where you belong.This sentence is useful for using gehören to indicate where someone belongs.Tatoeba #12816126 by Waldelfe, translation #3724107 by CM
- Hier gehören Sie her.This is where you belong.Tatoeba #12816122 by Waldelfe, translation #3635979 by CK
- Sie möchten dazu gehörenThey want to belong to it
- Ich habe eine starke Zugehörigkeit zu meiner FamilieI have a strong sense of belonging to my family
- Mir g'hörn zamm!We belong together!
- I g'hör da net dazuaI don't belong here
- 49 more sentences on Tatoeba
Sources
- Wiktionary, “belong” translations and entries gehören, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (gehören, zu) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries gehören, zu, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
