01
bereuen
to regret
To feel regret and remorse about a past action or decision and wish one had acted differently.
example
Er bereute es zutiefst, seine Freunde angelogen zu haben.
He deeply regretted having lied to his friends.
bereuen
to regret
Checking...
Loading your saved state.
Meanings
Usage tips
Word family
'Bereuen' (to regret) is derived directly from the noun 'die Reue' (remorse/regret). When you regret something, you feel remorse about it.
EXAMPLE
Er zeigte keine Reue für seine Tat.
He showed no remorse for his act.
Sentence structure and use
The verb 'bereuen' (to regret) can be used in three ways: with an accusative object, with a 'dass' clause, or with an infinitive construction with 'zu'.
EXAMPLE
Ich bereue meine Worte.
I regret my words.
Typical collocations
Common things people regret are 'eine Entscheidung' (a decision), 'eine Tat' (an act/deed), or 'Worte' (words). The feeling is often intensified with adverbs such as 'zutiefst' (deeply), 'bitter' (bitterly), or 'sehr' (very much).
EXAMPLE
Später hat er seine Entscheidung bitter bereut.
Later, he bitterly regretted his decision.
Compare with
bereuen vs entschuldigen
to apologize / excuse
'entschuldigen' and 'bereuen' can both be important after a mistake or a wrong decision. 'Sich entschuldigen' means to apologize and is an outward action: you speak to the person affected and ask for forgiveness. 'Bereuen' is mainly a feeling: you see your own earlier action as bad and wish you had acted differently. You can regret something without apologizing. And you can apologize even if you only want to be polite. So the words are easy to confuse, but they emphasize different sides.
bereuen
Beim Frühstück bereut Mila, dass sie den Termin vergessen hat.
At breakfast, Mila regrets forgetting the appointment.
entschuldigen
Nach dem Einkauf entschuldigt sich der Kunde für seinen Ton.
After shopping, the customer apologizes for his tone.
In real life
Loading video examples...