tun
to do
To carry out an action or perform an activity. It is a very general verb for activity.
EXAMPLE
Was tust du gerade?
What are you doing right now?
tun
to do
Checking...
Loading your saved state.
Meanings
tun
to put
To lay, place, or put something in a specific location. Often used colloquially.
EXAMPLE
Tu mal den Zucker in den Kaffee.
Put the sugar in the coffee.
zu tun haben mit
to have to do with
To be connected to something or someone; to be occupied or concerned with something.
EXAMPLE
Seine schlechte Laune hat nichts mit dir zu tun.
His bad mood has nothing to do with you.
so tun als ob
to act as if
To pretend or act as if something is the case, even though it is not true.
EXAMPLE
Er tat so, als ob er mich nicht gesehen hätte.
He acted as if he hadn't seen me.
es tut mir leid
I'm sorry
A fixed expression used to express regret or an apology.
EXAMPLE
Es tut mir leid, dass ich zu spät bin.
I'm sorry that I'm late.
weh tun
to hurt
To cause pain, either physically or emotionally.
EXAMPLE
Pass auf, dass du dir nicht weh tust.
Be careful not to hurt yourself.
gut tun
to do good
To have a positive effect on someone or something; to be beneficial.
EXAMPLE
Ein Spaziergang an der frischen Luft wird dir guttun.
A walk in the fresh air will do you good.
zu tun sein
to be done
Expresses that a task or work has to be completed.
EXAMPLE
Im Garten gibt es heute noch viel zu tun.
There is still a lot to do in the garden today.
Usage tips
Common mistake
A typical mistake is to use 'tun' like the English 'to do'. For many activities, such as 'Sport machen' (to do sports/exercise) or 'Hausaufgaben machen' (to do homework), German has more specific verbs that are preferred.
EXAMPLE
Ich muss noch meine Hausaufgaben machen.
I still have to do my homework.
Register: colloquial
The use of 'tun' in the sense of 'legen' (to lay) or 'stellen' (to place/stand) is very colloquial. In formal or written texts, you should use more precise verbs instead, such as 'legen' (to lay), 'stellen' (to place/stand), or 'geben' (to give/put).
EXAMPLE
Kannst du bitte die Milch in den Kühlschrank tun?
Can you please put the milk in the fridge?
Fixed expression
The expression 'mit etwas/jemandem zu tun haben' (to have to do with something/someone) is fixed. It is always used with the preposition 'mit' and the dative.
EXAMPLE
Ich will mit dieser Sache nichts zu tun haben.
I don't want to have anything to do with this matter.
Sentence structure
The construction 'so tun, als ob ...' (to act as if ...) introduces a subordinate clause that describes what is only being pretended. The verb in this subordinate clause is often in Konjunktiv II.
EXAMPLE
Sie tut so, als ob sie alles wüsste.
She acts as if she knew everything.
Dative construction
In the expression 'es tut mir leid' (I'm sorry), the person who feels regret is always in the dative (mir, dir, ihm, ihr, uns, euch, ihnen).
EXAMPLE
Es tut uns sehr leid, dass wir den Termin absagen müssen.
We're very sorry that we have to cancel the appointment.
Dative construction
The verb 'weh tun' (to hurt) is also used with the dative to name the person who feels pain. The thing that hurts is the subject of the sentence.
EXAMPLE
Mein Rücken tut mir heute weh.
My back hurts today.
Dative construction
As with 'leid tun' (to be sorry) and 'weh tun' (to hurt), with 'gut tun' (to do good/be good for), the person who has the positive feeling is put in the dative.
EXAMPLE
Eine Tasse Tee wird dir guttun.
A cup of tea will do you good.
Passive-like construction
The expression 'es gibt viel zu tun' (there is a lot to do) or 'es ist viel zu tun' (there is a lot to be done) describes that work is pending. It is a common construction for expressing necessity.
EXAMPLE
Vor der Feier ist noch einiges zu tun.
There is still quite a bit to do before the celebration.
Compare with
tun vs machen
to do / make
Machen and tun can both refer to a general action. Machen is very often used with a specifically named activity, while tun is especially common for a general action or in fixed expressions. When you name the specific activity, machen is usually the right choice; when it remains unspecified, tun is often more natural.
tun
Gegen den Lärm muss ich etwas tun.
I have to do something about the noise.
machen
Nach dem Essen mache ich den Abwasch.
After dinner, I do the dishes.
In real life
Loading video examples...