drängeln, dringend, aufdringlich – The Family of “der Drang”
The core meaning of "der Drang" is an inner urge. Today, we'll explore when to use it and learn the menaing of drängeln, eindringen, aufdrängen and dringend. .
Words we'll learn:
der Drang, der Zwang, eindringen, aufdringlich, dringend, drängeln, abdrängen,...
By: Emanuel|51 Comments| Updated:
January 16, 2026
Hello everyone,
and welcome to our German Word of the Day, this time with a look at the meaning of
der Drang
And we won’t only look at Drang of course but also at other cool words like dringendor drängeln. Okay, drängelnisn’t that cool actually. But sometimes you have to do it. Like… when you have to get out of a packed train. Or when the article you’re reading to learn German randomly starts talking about a horse that just stands on a meadow. And it describes how the horse just stands there. And then it eats a bit of grass. And takes a few steps. And then stands there. And you’re like: “Emanuel, can we get started already?!” That’s drängeln :). So let’s jump right in.
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drängeln, dringend, aufdringlich – The Family of “der Drang” - Key Questions
It means an inner urge or strong desire that pushes you from the inside. Think of things like "Tatendrang" for energy to act or "Harndrang" for the urge to pee.
"Der Drang" is an internal urge that you can often resist, while "der Zwang" is a stronger compulsion or coercion that comes across as impossible to ignore.
"Drängen" is to press or push someone or something in a direction. "Drängeln" is the repetitive, little pushing you do in crowds or the nagging kind of hurrying someone. "Vordrängeln" means cutting the line.
"verdrängen" means to push away or displace. Use it for people being pushed out of a neighborhood or for repressing feelings in psychology. It’s common and handy in both social and emotional contexts.
"dringend" means urgently or something that needs immediate attention. Use it to say you must do or discuss something right away, like "I have to talk to you urgently."
"eindringen" means to forcefully enter or penetrate, either literally or figuratively. Think for instance of water slowly leaking through the walls or a reporter penetrating your private sphere.
- Das Tracking dringt in meine Privatsphäre ein. - The tracking enters into my private sphere.
das Gedränge is a good example for this topic, and would be a nice addition to one’s vocabulary.
Nietzsche
for about a year I am steadily studying to learn German and I have used all kinds of materials and still using but I find your site most beneficial. it is not directly so didactic but it gives me the main notions and sense of German language which makes me think that what the basic principle and idea of language learning process should be like.
I hope you always continue what you do.
Junjie
Is it also possible to add the example sentences into the csv file? :p
Possible yes, and I’m planning on doing something like that, but it’s quite a bit of extra work and I don’t have enough time at the moment. The .csv is more like a quick fix, while the real thing is in the works ;)
berlingrabers
Just came across another (this time reflexive) use of “aufdrängen” in a student’s paper:
– Beim ersten Studieren … drängen sich eine Reihe von Fragen auf.
Would you take this as “jostle/vie for attention”? Or that they just arise or emerge in a lively (possibly slightly [metaphorically] violent) sort of way?
Hmmm… think of as the questions as a bunch of news reporters closing in on someone who just gets out from a summit meeting. “arise” gets the overall message across but they lack the pushy-ness a bit. The other options, however, sound more naggy than pushy to me. But I’m not a native speaker, so I don’t really know. Also, it’s very fine distinctions we’re talking about here. All four options would be okay translations.
That’s what I figured. Probably one of those first two versions works – “jostling/vying for attention” is pretty much how I’d describe the reporters in a crowd. I don’t actually need to translate it, though. :)
Anyway, I just thought it was neat that I happened to come across it this week.
Depends on how it is done. “upselling” doesn’t have to that pushy, I believe. Like… you can do it in a very subtle way.
Merjem Begić
I’m thankful to the people who payed some extra, because I got the chance to learn of such an amazing site. Thank you for helping out to people like me !
Seayon
Hello everyone! I’m Seayon from India. I would like to thank all the fellow members who have payed extra for those who can’t afford this membership. A big shoutout to Emanuel for creating best content for the learners. I’ll try my best to put this opportunity to a good use! #teamspirit :)
ronald75
Hello Emmanuel, Would it be possible that you discuss the many meanings of ansetzen. thank you
Lamb
Just come across dringlich vs. dringend both mean urgent but in different contexts. Am I right ?
“dringlich” sounds a bit technical/formal to me and I think you’d mostly find that in compounds… the one that came to my mind immediately is “Dringlichkeitssitzung”, which is an emergency meeting. I pretty much never use “dringlich” and daily life.
ronald75
Hello Emmanuel, thank you for an excellent lesson. I have problems with the constant recurrent use of both hin and her in conversations. Would you have discussed this in a previous lesson or could you suggest a reference ? thanks very much !
It’s a small point, but English foxes don’t live in burrows. Burrows are for small creatures like rabbits and moles. A fox lives in a ‘den’ or an ‘earth’.
Oh wow, I didn’t know that. And “earth”? Does anybody know if that is the same word as the planet or if it’s just two words that happened to have the same spelling?
I’d never heard “earth” as a term for a fox’s dwelling. Interesting. It’s definitely the same word, though, at least based on dictionary.reference.com.
“Den” would probably be the most appropriate term I’d think of for where a fox lives, but I don’t think “burrow” would come across as wrong to most laymen (like me) – they’re really the same thing, and “burrow” is likely to be the word a dictionary will use to explain what an “earth” in this sense is.
formaneka
Ich wollte ein bißchen mehr über drängeln in Verkehr verstehen. Ist das nur wenn man sehr nah hinter ein anderen Auto fährt, oder kann es auch verwenden werden in so eine Angelegenheit wo man häufig lanes? wechselt –was auf Englishen “weaving in an out of traffic” genannt würde? (und bitte korrigier mein Deutsch!)
Gute Frage. Ich bin selber kein Autofahrer, aber ich persönlich würde Spurwechsel nicht als drängeln empfinden. Wenn jemand die Spur wechselt, dann macht er ja im Endeffekt Platz. “drängeln” impliziert für mich ein bisschen, dass jemand was von meinen Platz nehmen will.
“a dentist pushing” is good phrasing – a medical profi akin to a drug dealer, both upselling their wares to rapt audiences.
regarding “eindringlich”, i think instead of poignantly, “emphatically” may be better, esp. when it comes to being pushed into dishwashing. (shakespeare might have been beseeched to do it, had he not had such delicate hands…)
Oh, yeah, I was going to comment on “eindringlich” – “poignant” really means “emotionally powerful/resonant.” I thought he was probably going for “pointedly,” which I think would fit.
I think a good description would be “with high intensity and urgency”. Like… in a movie when at the third act someone says “We need to stop him!” about the villain.
For which one? I don’t see the Drang/dringen family as pointing to something as strong as “coerce” – for that you need “zwingen.”
Amerikanerin
In response to: (What would be a good translation here? Is there something a little more pushy than “sell them extras”?)
What you wrote, (Some dentists try to push expensive extras onto their patients.) is OK. Perhaps “Some dentists try to push their patients into buying expensive extras,” but your version was spot on in my ears.
Does “on” weirdly sound a little more idiomatic to you than “onto”? It kind of does for me, maybe making it sound a little less literal/spatial. Looks like Google agrees: “try to push * on you” gets close to 7,000 hits, while “try to push * onto you” gets under 1,000.
At any rate, “push something on(to) someone” is absolutely right.
Oh, and in Amerikanerin’s alternative version, you could also use “pressure” as a verb:
– Some dentists try to pressure their patients into buying expensive extras.
Giorgi
Hello, fellow German-learners!!! I’m Giorgi from Georgia :)) I just want to say that im very very thankful for the fact that now I’m a part of the community! All thanks to the memebrs who have payed extra for those who can’t afford a membership. It feels like the place is all about learning and helping and developing (shout-out to Emanuel for creating it) which motivates me even more and I promise I’ll do my best to put the opportunity to a good use! #teamspirit
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das Gedränge is a good example for this topic, and would be a nice addition to one’s vocabulary.
for about a year I am steadily studying to learn German and I have used all kinds of materials and still using but I find your site most beneficial. it is not directly so didactic but it gives me the main notions and sense of German language which makes me think that what the basic principle and idea of language learning process should be like.
I hope you always continue what you do.
Is it also possible to add the example sentences into the csv file? :p
Possible yes, and I’m planning on doing something like that, but it’s quite a bit of extra work and I don’t have enough time at the moment. The .csv is more like a quick fix, while the real thing is in the works ;)
Just came across another (this time reflexive) use of “aufdrängen” in a student’s paper:
– Beim ersten Studieren … drängen sich eine Reihe von Fragen auf.
Would you take this as “jostle/vie for attention”? Or that they just arise or emerge in a lively (possibly slightly [metaphorically] violent) sort of way?
Hmmm… think of as the questions as a bunch of news reporters closing in on someone who just gets out from a summit meeting. “arise” gets the overall message across but they lack the pushy-ness a bit. The other options, however, sound more naggy than pushy to me. But I’m not a native speaker, so I don’t really know.
Also, it’s very fine distinctions we’re talking about here. All four options would be okay translations.
That’s what I figured. Probably one of those first two versions works – “jostling/vying for attention” is pretty much how I’d describe the reporters in a crowd. I don’t actually need to translate it, though. :)
Anyway, I just thought it was neat that I happened to come across it this week.
By the way, no mention of: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sturm_und_Drang ? (English: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sturm_und_Drang)
I ain’t much for books, you know ;)
The first thing I thought of in regards to the dentist pushing extras, was that he was up-selling. Would that be a reasonable translation?
Depends on how it is done. “upselling” doesn’t have to that pushy, I believe. Like… you can do it in a very subtle way.
I’m thankful to the people who payed some extra, because I got the chance to learn of such an amazing site. Thank you for helping out to people like me !
Hello everyone! I’m Seayon from India. I would like to thank all the fellow members who have payed extra for those who can’t afford this membership. A big shoutout to Emanuel for creating best content for the learners. I’ll try my best to put this opportunity to a good use! #teamspirit :)
Hello Emmanuel,
Would it be possible that you discuss the many meanings of ansetzen.
thank you
Just come across dringlich vs. dringend both mean urgent but in different contexts. Am I right ?
“dringlich” sounds a bit technical/formal to me and I think you’d mostly find that in compounds… the one that came to my mind immediately is “Dringlichkeitssitzung”, which is an emergency meeting.
I pretty much never use “dringlich” and daily life.
Hello Emmanuel,
thank you for an excellent lesson.
I have problems with the constant recurrent use of both hin and her in conversations. Would you have discussed this in a previous lesson or could you suggest a reference ?
thanks very much !
I haven’t talked about the two back to back yet, but I do have an article about “her-“.
You can find it here:
https://yourdailygerman.com/her-german-meaning/
From Live Science: “A group of foxes are called a leash, skulk or earth, according to the U.S. Department of Interior.” I’ve only heard of “packs.”
Wow, English has so many different names for animal groups (pack, flock, school, skulk, leash, … )
The classic is a group of crows, which is called a “murder.” (Seriously.)
Danke für diese Perle: “Wenn es beim Eindringen wehtut, sollte man über Gleitgel nachdenken.” Klasse!
Gerne :)
A related term I encountered recently is
in Bedrängnis sein — to be in dire straits / distress
Great addition, thanks!
It’s a small point, but English foxes don’t live in burrows. Burrows are for small creatures like rabbits and moles. A fox lives in a ‘den’ or an ‘earth’.
Oh wow, I didn’t know that. And “earth”? Does anybody know if that is the same word as the planet or if it’s just two words that happened to have the same spelling?
I’d never heard “earth” as a term for a fox’s dwelling. Interesting. It’s definitely the same word, though, at least based on dictionary.reference.com.
“Den” would probably be the most appropriate term I’d think of for where a fox lives, but I don’t think “burrow” would come across as wrong to most laymen (like me) – they’re really the same thing, and “burrow” is likely to be the word a dictionary will use to explain what an “earth” in this sense is.
Ich wollte ein bißchen mehr über drängeln in Verkehr verstehen. Ist das nur wenn man sehr nah hinter ein anderen Auto fährt, oder kann es auch verwenden werden in so eine Angelegenheit wo man häufig lanes? wechselt –was auf Englishen “weaving in an out of traffic” genannt würde? (und bitte korrigier mein Deutsch!)
Gute Frage. Ich bin selber kein Autofahrer, aber ich persönlich würde Spurwechsel nicht als drängeln empfinden. Wenn jemand die Spur wechselt, dann macht er ja im Endeffekt Platz.
“drängeln” impliziert für mich ein bisschen, dass jemand was von meinen Platz nehmen will.
Danke für deine Antwort! (und für das Wort Spur : )
Hello Emmanuel, in a future post, could you discuss the many meanings of ansetzen. thank you
Nice idea!!
Did you check out the Word of the Day on “spüren”? There’s more details in there:
https://yourdailygerman.com/spueren-spur-german-meaning/
“a dentist pushing” is good phrasing – a medical profi akin to a drug dealer, both upselling their wares to rapt audiences.
regarding “eindringlich”, i think instead of poignantly, “emphatically” may be better, esp. when it comes to being pushed into dishwashing.
(shakespeare might have been beseeched to do it, had he not had such delicate hands…)
Oh, yeah, I was going to comment on “eindringlich” – “poignant” really means “emotionally powerful/resonant.” I thought he was probably going for “pointedly,” which I think would fit.
I think a good description would be “with high intensity and urgency”. Like… in a movie when at the third act someone says “We need to stop him!” about the villain.
I agree with berlingrabers. Poignant does not imply the sense of forcefulness or desire to apply pressure in this context.
Coerce!
For which one? I don’t see the Drang/dringen family as pointing to something as strong as “coerce” – for that you need “zwingen.”
In response to: (What would be a good translation here? Is there something a little more pushy than “sell them extras”?)
What you wrote, (Some dentists try to push expensive extras onto their patients.) is OK. Perhaps “Some dentists try to push their patients into buying expensive extras,” but your version was spot on in my ears.
Does “on” weirdly sound a little more idiomatic to you than “onto”? It kind of does for me, maybe making it sound a little less literal/spatial. Looks like Google agrees: “try to push * on you” gets close to 7,000 hits, while “try to push * onto you” gets under 1,000.
At any rate, “push something on(to) someone” is absolutely right.
Oh, and in Amerikanerin’s alternative version, you could also use “pressure” as a verb:
– Some dentists try to pressure their patients into buying expensive extras.
Hello, fellow German-learners!!! I’m Giorgi from Georgia :)) I just want to say that im very very thankful for the fact that now I’m a part of the community! All thanks to the memebrs who have payed extra for those who can’t afford a membership. It feels like the place is all about learning and helping and developing (shout-out to Emanuel for creating it) which motivates me even more and I promise I’ll do my best to put the opportunity to a good use! #teamspirit