treffen
/ˈtʁɛfən/
The German word for 'meet' is treffen.
treffen is used when you come face to face with someone by arrangement. It is also used for the physical act of hitting a target or for running into someone by chance.
Meaning: to come face to face with someone by arrangement (verb)
Which one should you use?
While treffen can describe meeting by arrangement, it is distinct from the concept of 'coming together' for a formal event or gathering, which is more appropriately expressed by the term Zusammenkommen. For informal situations with friends, such as the desire to see each other, speakers often use Sich sehen.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
treffen is a strong verb, which means its stem vowel changes in the past tense. The simple past form is traf and the past participle is getroffen.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈtʁɛfən/
What mistakes should you avoid?
Do not use treffen when you mean 'to meet' in the sense of getting to know someone for the first time. In those cases, use kennenlernen instead.
Did you know?
- The English word 'drub', meaning to beat or defeat, shares the same ancient ancestor as the German treffen.
- Because treffen can mean to hit a target, saying 'Ich treffe dich' to a person can sound like a threat to strike them rather than a promise to meet them.
- The verb treffen is used in the expression den richtigen Ton treffen, which means to strike the right chord or use the appropriate tone in a conversation.
Examples in context
- Nett Sie zu treffen.Pleased to meet you.This sentence is useful for expressing pleasure at meeting someone.Tatoeba #712513 by Esperantostern, translation #456635 by lukaszpp
- Er will sie treffen.He wants to meet her.This sentence shows how to express a desire to meet someone.Tatoeba #12152598 by nexx, translation #8521099 by CH
- Lass uns Tom treffen.Let's meet Tom.This sentence is a suggestion to meet a specific person.Tatoeba #6615565 by Felixjp, translation #2235863 by CK
- Ich möchte mich mit Ihnen treffen.I would like to meet with you.
- Wann können wir uns treffen?When can we meet?
- Wir sollten zusammenkommen, um weitere Details zu besprechen.We should meet to discuss further details.
- Wir sollten ein Treffen vereinbaren.We should schedule a meeting.
- Können wir uns später treffen?Can we meet later?
- Wir sollten uns diese Woche sehen.We should meet this week.
- Lass uns zusammenkommen und etwas unternehmen.Let's get together and do something.
- 535 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Felix and Hannah are planning a coffee date.
- FelixWollen wir uns morgen treffen?Do we want to meet tomorrow?
- HannahJa, gerne. Wo wollen wir uns treffen?Yes, gladly. Where do we want to meet?
- FelixIch kann dich im Café treffen.I can meet you at the cafe.
- HannahDas ist ein guter Plan.That is a good plan.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “meet” translations and entries treffen, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries treffen, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
