German Prefixes
This is a general view of the most important German prefixes. The example is "legen" (to lay)
Prefix | Verb | Literally | Translation |
---|---|---|---|
ab- | legen | to lay down | to lay down to abandon sth. |
an- | legen | to lay by/at | to attach sth. to dock |
auf- | legen | to lay up | to apply |
aus- | legen | to lay out | to lay sth. out |
be- | legen | to lay sth. on sth. | to overlay |
bei- | legen | to lay at/by | to add |
dar- | legen | to lay there | to point sth. out |
ein- | legen | to lay in | to inlay |
ent- | legen | dis-lay | faraway, outlying NOTE: entlegen is an adjective and not a verb! |
er- | legen | to achieve-lay | to kill/ to conclude successfully |
ge- | legen | to be laid | seated, situated, opportune NOTE: gelegen is an adjective and not a verb! |
hin- | legen | to lay there | to put down |
nach- | legen | to lay after | to put some more of sth. on |
nieder- | legen | to lay down | to put down an object / to lay down an office / to lie down also: to go to sleep |
über- | legen | to lay over | to think about sth. |
um- | legen | to lay around/over again | to allocate, also: to kill |
unter- | legen | to lay under | to put under |
ver- | legen | – | to be shy / to lose to edit (books, newspaper) |
vor- | legen | to lay previous to sth. | to bring sth. before so. |
weg- | legen | to lay away | to put away |
wider- | legen | to lay against | to disprove |
zer- | legen | to lay sth. in pieces | to dismantle |
zu- | legen | to lay to sth. | to put on / to buy something new |
zusammen- | legen | to lay together | to pool sth. |
Read more about this topic: German Verbs
Famous quotes containing the word german:
“Hes leaving Germany by special request of the Nazi government. First he sends a dispatch about Danzig and how 10,000 German tourists are pouring into the city every day with butterfly nets in their hands and submachine guns in their knapsacks. They warn him right then. What does he do next? Goes to a reception at von Ribbentropfs and keeps yelling for gefilte fish!”
—Billy Wilder (b. 1906)