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German Phrase

Ich verbringe Zeit mit meiner Familie.

/ɪç fɛɐ̯ˈbʁɪŋə ˈtsaɪ̯t mɪt ˈmaɪ̯nɐ ˈfaːmiliː/
Meaning"I spend time with my family."
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Meaning

The sentence means ‘I spend time with my family.’ It expresses that the speaker allocates personal time to be together with family members, often for bonding, meals, outings, or simply being in each other’s company.

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When to use

Use this phrase when you want to talk about family activities, describe a regular habit, or explain why you are unavailable because you are with family. It works well in casual conversation, social media posts, or when answering questions about your weekend plans.

✦Grammar Breakdown

IchverbringeZeitmitmeinerFamilie

1

Ich (pronoun)

First‑person singular nominative pronoun, used as the subject of the sentence.

2

verbringen (verb)

A regular verb meaning ‘to spend (time)’. It takes a direct object in the accusative (Zeit) and a prepositional phrase with ‘mit’ + dative.

3

Zeit (noun)

Feminine noun, accusative singular. It is the object that is being spent.

4

mit (preposition)

A preposition that always governs the dative case.

5

meiner (possessive adjective)

The possessive form of ‘mein’ declined for dative feminine singular, required after ‘mit’.

6

Familie (noun)

Feminine noun, dative singular, meaning ‘family’.

🗨In Conversation

A

Ich verbringe Zeit mit meiner Familie.

I spend time with my family.

Das klingt schön! Was macht ihr zusammen?

That sounds nice! What do you do together?

B

✕Common Mistakes

  • Ich verbringe Zeit mit meine Familie.

    ‘mit’ requires the dative case, so the possessive must be ‘meiner’, not ‘meine’.

  • Ich verbringe Zeit zu meiner Familie.

    The verb ‘verbringen’ does not collocate with ‘zu’; the correct preposition is ‘mit’.

  • Ich verbringt Zeit mit meiner Familie.

    Learners sometimes forget to conjugate the verb for the first person singular; it must be ‘verbringe’, not ‘verbringt’.

↔Alternatives

  • Mit meiner Familie verbringe ich Zeit.

    I spend time with my family.

  • Ich verbringe meine Freizeit mit meiner Familie.

    I spend my free time with my family.

de

Cultural Tip

In German‑speaking countries family gatherings are a cornerstone of social life, especially on weekends and holidays. Saying you ‘verbringst Zeit mit deiner Familie’ signals that you value these bonds. Avoid using ‘machen’ (to do) in this context; German prefers ‘verbringen’ when talking about spending time. Also, note that the possessive adjective must match the dative case after ‘mit’, so it’s ‘meiner Familie’, not ‘meine Familie’.