fortgehen

Use fortgehen when you are leaving a location. You can use it for short trips or longer ones. It’s very versatile! For instance, you might say you’re going out with friends tonight. Or, you could say someone has left the town for good. The context usually clarifies the duration. It’s a common verb in everyday German conversations. You’ll hear it a lot, so get ready to use it yourself!

Imagine you're telling your friend about your weekend plans. You could say, 'Ich gehe am Samstagabend mit Freunden fort.' (I'm going out with friends on Saturday evening). Or maybe you're discussing a friend who moved abroad: 'Sie ist letztes Jahr nach Kanada fortgegangen.' (She went away to Canada last year). It’s perfect for describing the act of leaving.

Use fortgehen when you want to express leaving a place. This could be for leisure, like going to a concert or a bar. It also works for more permanent moves, like relocating for a job. If you're leaving your current location to be somewhere else, fortgehen is often the right verb. It’s great for everyday situations and even more significant life events. Did you know some people use it to mean 'to break up'? We’ll get to that!

Don't use fortgehen if you're just moving within the same building. For example, going from your office to the breakroom isn't fortgehen. Also, avoid it for very short, insignificant movements. If you're just stepping outside for a minute to grab the mail, rausgehen (to go out) might be better. It’s not for internal shifts either, like changing your mind. That would be sich etwas überlegen.

Learners sometimes confuse fortgehen with simply gehen (to go). While gehen is general, fortgehen implies leaving a specific place. Another common slip-up is using it for very brief exits. You wouldn't say 'Ich gehe jetzt fort' just to walk to the kitchen. That sounds a bit odd. Also, remember the past participle is fortgegangen, not fortgegeht. It’s like a little German grammar surprise party!

Weggehen is a very close synonym, often interchangeable. Ausgehen specifically means 'to go out,' usually for entertainment like dinner or a movie. Verlassen means 'to leave' in a more formal or definitive sense, like leaving a job or a country. Abfahren means 'to depart,' typically used for vehicles like trains or cars. Each has its own subtle flavor!

Sometimes, Germans shorten it to just fort. For example, 'Ich bin fort.' (I'm gone/away). This is very informal. You might also hear weg sein (to be gone/away), which is similar. The prefix fort- can be attached to other verbs too, like fortbringen (to bring away/help someone overcome something) or fortsetzen (to continue). It’s a busy prefix!