other

getan

done · do

Es ist die Vergangenheitsform von ‚tun‘ und beschreibt, dass eine Handlung bereits ausgeführt wurde.

Definition & meaning

getan is the past participle of tun and usually means “done” or “carried out.” It appears in perfect-tense forms, such as „Ich habe es getan“ (“I did it” / “I have done it”).

In some expressions, it has a more specific sense:

„Damit ist es getan.“ — “That’s all that needs to be done.”
„Was getan werden muss“ — “What needs to be done.”

Grammar & Word origin

getan is the past participle of the irregular verb tun . It is formed with the prefix ge- and the stem tan. The perfect tense uses haben: „hat getan“ (“has done”).

Synonyms & antonyms

Possible synonyms depend on context:

gemacht — “done” or “made”; more general and often more everyday than getan.
erledigt — “completed” or “taken care of”; emphasizes that a task is finished.
ausgeführt — “carried out”; emphasizes performing an instruction or action.
vollbracht — “accomplished”; often suggests a notable or difficult achievement.

There is no single direct antonym. Depending on context, unterlassen (“to refrain from doing”) or versäumt (“failed to do” or “missed”) may express the opposite.