We'll take a thorough look at "wenden" and its family and what turning, using, learning by heart, relatives and walls have to do with one another. #vocabAF
Words we'll learn:
wenden, die Wand, verwenden, anwenden, auswendig, verwandt,...
By: Emanuel|84 Comments| Updated:
January 15, 2026
Hello everyone,
and welcome to our German Word of the Day. This time with a look the meaning of
wenden
A man once said “If I had a Dime for every word that German has for to turn, I would be a rich man.” Clearly, this man does not understand money very well. But German does have quite a few possible translations for to turn and wenden is one of them and to understand what kind of turning wenden is about it helps to … ahem … turn to the related words. The most obvious one is of course winden (to wind). Wendenis what linguists call the causative version of winden, meaning “to make wind”. But there’s another related word that’s even more helpful, I think: die Wand.
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Word of the Day – “wenden” - Key Questions
Wenden is about turning something from one side to the other or changing direction. Drehen focuses on a circular or spinning movement. ·Ich wende mein Steak. ·I turn my steak from one side to the other.
·Ich drehe mein Steak. ·I spin my steak.
Yes. Drivers and signs say "Bitte wenden" and you can use it for flipping pages. Do not use it for a person physically turning around, use a different verb instead. ·Bitte wenden. ·Please turn around
"sich+Acc wenden an" means to turn to someone in the sense of going there for help, advice or just information. ·Wenn Maria eine Rezeptidee braucht, wendet sie sich an ihre Cousine. ·Whenever Maria needs an idea for a dish, she turns to her cousin.
"Verwenden" means to use something, often a bit more formal or abstract. "Anwenden" is to apply something in practice, more targeted. "Benutzen" sounds more hands on or rough. Use whichever fits the tone.
"Abwenden" can mean to turn away or to avert something like trouble. "Aufwenden" is about spending resources for a purpose. The noun "Aufwand" means the effort or cost involved and "aufwendig" means requiring lots of effort.
Yes. "Die Wende" is the big historical turnaround. "Energiewende" is the energy shift. "Entwenden" means to steal and "auswendig" means by heart. A common idiom is the page turning meaning a change in fortune. ·Das Blatt hat sich gewendet. ·The tide has turned
“Zeit verwenden für” is not very common, but it would be about “employing, investing time” for something. Like a project for instance. “Zeit verbringen (mit)” is about where you are or what you do during a given amount of time.
Hallo Emanuel! Bin erst jetzt auf diesen Post gestoßen und hätte mal eine Frage: Gibt es einen Grund dafür, warum: “ich wende mich DIR zu” aber “ich wende mich VON DIR ab” ? Oder kann man auch “Ich wende mich DIR ab”
Ich glaube, du hast dir die Frage eigentlich selbst beantwortet. Du würdest den deutschen Satz nicht mit “to use” übersetzen, also warum sollte “geben” eine Alternative für “verwenden” sein?
– I use olive oil into the water…. nahhhhh
Der Gebrauch ist wie du sagt “hinzufügen”. Im Kontext von kochen findet man das in Kochbüchern ziemlich oft.
Mihai
Great article, as always. It was quite a long read because right at the beginning I had to google „causative version” and, boy, was that a three-hour rabbit hole. Btw, is “heißen-nennnen” also an example of causative alternation? I think you missed a word in this example: “Nach einem kurzen Chat mit der neuen wendet sich Thomas wieder seiner Arbeit zu”. Or is this a “Mach die Frau ausfindig” case? Fun fact, in Romanian one way to say “(to know) by heart” can be literally translated as “(to know) from/on the outside”, which is (according to wiktionary) pretty close to the old German meaning of “auswendig” as in “towards the outside/ antonym of inwendig”.
Hahahaha… maybe I should have given that a couple of sentences to say what it is :D. As for “heißen” and “nennen”… not so sure there. In my understanding, the verbs have to be related to really “qualify” for the terms (that may well be 100% wrong). lay and lie is another couple.
As for the missing word… I think I should have capitalized “Neuen”, because it means “the new one.” German adjectives can do that without the extra “one” there. Nice parallel to Romanian :)!
Turtles
A) Kann man “Verwenden” figurativ verwendt?
B) Manche Satz
1) Sie sollten diese Fähigkeiten Verwenden, um erfolgreich zu sein und Sie können nicht einfach Ihre Logik anwenden
2) Wenn du Hilfe brauchst,wendest du dich an mir, denn ich bin hier bei dir, und ich bin mir sicher, dass du dich wendest mir zu.
3) Zu Schlafen, das ist aufwendig. Kein Endwände? Endwenden Sie?
4) Wende du dich zu, was du sagst. Das ist nicht hofflich
5) Wer entwendt meinen Apfel? Das is nicht wichtig mehr. Du soll dich meinen Name auswendig erinnern
C) Beitrag
ein taubes Ohr für jdn. haben (turn a deaf ear to sb)
Zeit auf etw. Akk verwenden (you can use für instead of auf. Although you would propably say “Ich verbinge meine Zeit mit ….”
D) Endung
I was gonne use Wandeln and so,but you gotta relax and 5 sentence is already a handful
A) How am I supposed to answer that? In what figurative sense?
1) “anwenden” sounds more idiomatic with “Fähigkeiten” (no reason, just language in use) 2) “wendest du dich an mich” instead of “an mir” 3) What’s “aufwendig” about schlafen? And what does “Entwenden Sie” mean? 4) I don’t understand what that is supposed to mean. 5) “entwendet” not “entwendt”. “auswendig” works with “lernen” and “wissen”, not with “erinnern”
C) “Zeit auf etwas verwenden” sounds like work. It is NOT used for leisure, so it’s not synonymous with “verbringen”
A) I don’t understand what you mean. “verwenden” is about using. Don’t focus on employing so much.
3) “Keine Einwände”… yes, that is a good match for “Do you object.”
4) Technically it would be “Wende deine Aufmerksamkeit dem zu, was du sagst.” but that is absolutely not idiomatic. “zuwenden” is not so much about this accute paying attention.
Searched for the difference between benutzen and verwenden, and there it is :) So the sentence “Sollte ich Microsoft-Konto verwenden?” would sound absolutely normal with both words (in terms of logging in to some website)?
To me yes, though I would use “Account” instead of “Konto”. “Konto” to me sounds too much like a bank account. But that’s really just my personal preference.
George Sgouros
auswendig: aus (outside) + wendig (turn). While I was learning my vocabulary as a young boy, I used to cover the translation with my hands and turn my head towards the window (looking outside). This helped me remember the meaning of each word (and most importantly prevented me from accidentally looking for any hints inside the textbook). Could this be an explanation for auswendig?
Yeah, I was really surprised that it’s actually a real bird :)
Osama T.
Could you please explain the difference between these words (Verwenden, Anwenden, Nutzen, Benutzen, Gebrauchen), I’ve read some articles about them but I found a lot of contradictions and I thought who could explain it better than the guy who explained the infamous “Mal” and “Doch”, anyway you dont have to write a long explanation just a few hints and examples, and I’ll figure it out :) I just need to get a feel for when to use which.
barratt
Noch eine Frage. Man “wendete/hat gewendet” oder “wandte/hat gewandt”? Gibt es einen Unterschied im Gebrauch, oder hängt es von der Region ab, oder ist es völlig egal?
Die Versionen mit “a” gehen meiner Meinung nach nur, wenn du dich selber wendest.
– Ich habe mich an meinen Bruder gewandt. ( I turned to my brother for help) – Er wandte sich zur Wand. (he turned to the wall )
Im Alltag verwenden Leute hier auch die “e”-Version. Aber wenn du etwas wendest (ein Spiegelei oder ein Auto), dann geht NUR die “e”-Version
– Ich habe mein Steak gewandt… FALSCH
Hoffe, das hilft
camilo
wand (n.) c. 1200, from Old Norse vondr “rod, switch” (cognate with Gothic wandus “rod,” Middle Swedish vander), from Proto-Germanic *wend- “to turn,” see wind (v.1)). The notion is of a bending, flexible stick. Compare cognate Old Norse veggr, Old English wag “wall,” Old Saxon, Dutch wand, Old High German want, German Wand “wall,” originally “wickerwork for making walls,” or “wall made of wattle-work” (an insight into early Germanic domestic architecture). Magic wand is attested from c. 1400 and shows the etymological sense of “suppleness” already had been lost.
barratt
Toller Blogpost! Eine kleine Frage/Korrektur. “Auswendig” ist ein Adverb (kein Adjektiv), oder?
Emanuel.muss man nicht die verbe auswenden mit “lernen” oder erinneren” benutzen? As un learn or remember by heart?
Natalie
Hi all! To anyone who donated extra money to help others create an account… THANK YOU!!! I am a student at the University of Rochester in upstate New York. This will be my 3rd year studying German, and this blog is a huge help. As a broke college student, I am so appreciative of you all who gave some extra money to help others (like me) become a member of this blog! Vielen dank :)
Anonymous
I knew Deutsch was going to be trouble when I discovered that “unverwandt” is not the opposite of “verwandt”.
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Does ‘Abwenden’, as an opposite of ‘Zuwenden’, only works with ‘Von’, while ‘Zuwenden’ uses Dative?
Yes, “abwenden” needs “von” but “zuwenden” works with Dative.
– Ich wende mich dir zu.
– Ich wende mich von dir ab.
What’s the difference between verwenden Zeit and verbringen Zeit?
“Zeit verwenden für” is not very common, but it would be about “employing, investing time” for something. Like a project for instance.
“Zeit verbringen (mit)” is about where you are or what you do during a given amount of time.
Does that help?
Absolutely !thanks!
lighter
Hallo Emanuel! Bin erst jetzt auf diesen Post gestoßen und hätte mal eine Frage:
Gibt es einen Grund dafür, warum:
“ich wende mich DIR zu” aber “ich wende mich VON DIR ab” ? Oder kann man auch “Ich wende mich DIR ab”
No, that wouldn’t work.
“von X” is a common counter for the Dative as a receiver.
– Ich gebe dir 10 Euro.
– Ich bekommen von dir 10 Euro.
Hope that helps.
Grüße Emanuel –
Danke, dass du viele der Nuancen hervorgehoben hat. Ich habe eine Frage in Bezug auf “geben”. Ich habe seine Verwendung in diesem Satz bemerkt:
Ich gebe Olivenöl ins Wasser, wenn ich Pasta koche.
Ist “geben” eine Alternative zu “verwenden”? Oder ist das ein sehr spezifischer Gebrauch von “geben”, mit der Idee, etwas hinzuzufügen?
Ich glaube, du hast dir die Frage eigentlich selbst beantwortet.
Du würdest den deutschen Satz nicht mit “to use” übersetzen, also warum sollte “geben” eine Alternative für “verwenden” sein?
– I use olive oil into the water…. nahhhhh
Der Gebrauch ist wie du sagt “hinzufügen”. Im Kontext von kochen findet man das in Kochbüchern ziemlich oft.
Great article, as always. It was quite a long read because right at the beginning I had to google „causative version” and, boy, was that a three-hour rabbit hole. Btw, is “heißen-nennnen” also an example of causative alternation?
I think you missed a word in this example: “Nach einem kurzen Chat mit der neuen wendet sich Thomas wieder seiner Arbeit zu”. Or is this a “Mach die Frau ausfindig” case?
Fun fact, in Romanian one way to say “(to know) by heart” can be literally translated as “(to know) from/on the outside”, which is (according to wiktionary) pretty close to the old German meaning of “auswendig” as in “towards the outside/ antonym of inwendig”.
Hahahaha… maybe I should have given that a couple of sentences to say what it is :D.
As for “heißen” and “nennen”… not so sure there. In my understanding, the verbs have to be related to really “qualify” for the terms (that may well be 100% wrong).
lay and lie is another couple.
As for the missing word… I think I should have capitalized “Neuen”, because it means “the new one.” German adjectives can do that without the extra “one” there.
Nice parallel to Romanian :)!
A) Kann man “Verwenden” figurativ verwendt?
B) Manche Satz
1) Sie sollten diese Fähigkeiten Verwenden, um erfolgreich zu sein und Sie können nicht einfach Ihre Logik anwenden
2) Wenn du Hilfe brauchst,wendest du dich an mir, denn ich bin hier bei dir, und ich bin mir sicher, dass du dich wendest mir zu.
3) Zu Schlafen, das ist aufwendig. Kein Endwände? Endwenden Sie?
4) Wende du dich zu, was du sagst. Das ist nicht hofflich
5) Wer entwendt meinen Apfel? Das is nicht wichtig mehr. Du soll dich meinen Name auswendig erinnern
C) Beitrag
ein taubes Ohr für jdn. haben (turn a deaf ear to sb)
Zeit auf etw. Akk verwenden (you can use für instead of auf. Although you would propably say “Ich verbinge meine Zeit mit ….”
D) Endung
I was gonne use Wandeln and so,but you gotta relax and 5 sentence is already a handful
A) How am I supposed to answer that? In what figurative sense?
1) “anwenden” sounds more idiomatic with “Fähigkeiten” (no reason, just language in use)
2) “wendest du dich an mich” instead of “an mir”
3) What’s “aufwendig” about schlafen? And what does “Entwenden Sie” mean?
4) I don’t understand what that is supposed to mean.
5) “entwendet” not “entwendt”. “auswendig” works with “lernen” and “wissen”, not with “erinnern”
C) “Zeit auf etwas verwenden” sounds like work. It is NOT used for leisure, so it’s not synonymous with “verbringen”
A) Like employing sth that isn’t really employed?
If you employ what you learned here, You will notice a difference in results
I suppose that one is more anwenden as well
3) Nothing is aufwendig really. Perphbs a sarcastic comment. I thought the verb can be used like this “Do you object”
4) turn your attention to what you say (lit)
A) I don’t understand what you mean. “verwenden” is about using. Don’t focus on employing so much.
3) “Keine Einwände”… yes, that is a good match for “Do you object.”
4) Technically it would be “Wende deine Aufmerksamkeit dem zu, was du sagst.” but that is absolutely not idiomatic. “zuwenden” is not so much about this accute paying attention.
4) Could you give a bit more details. When is zuwenden used and how would you write that Satz?
The sentence would be done commonly:
– Achte auf deine Worte.
– Pass auf was du sagst. (more urgent sounding)
As for “zuwenden”
– Ich wende mich meiner Arbeit zu.
– I turn to my work.
Do winding and wenden have a common etymology ?
Yes, I mention it in the article.
Searched for the difference between benutzen and verwenden, and there it is :)
So the sentence “Sollte ich Microsoft-Konto verwenden?” would sound absolutely normal with both words (in terms of logging in to some website)?
To me yes, though I would use “Account” instead of “Konto”. “Konto” to me sounds too much like a bank account. But that’s really just my personal preference.
auswendig: aus (outside) + wendig (turn). While I was learning my vocabulary as a young boy, I used to cover the translation with my hands and turn my head towards the window (looking outside). This helped me remember the meaning of each word (and most importantly prevented me from accidentally looking for any hints inside the textbook). Could this be an explanation for auswendig?
Wow, perfect mnemonic :)!!! Not sure, if it’s actually how the word got its meaning, but as long as there ins’t one, let’s take this one.
Very interesting — thank you!
der Wendehals – a type of bird and people :)
Yeah, I was really surprised that it’s actually a real bird :)
Could you please explain the difference between these words (Verwenden, Anwenden, Nutzen, Benutzen, Gebrauchen), I’ve read some articles about them but I found a lot of contradictions and I thought who could explain it better than the guy who explained the infamous “Mal” and “Doch”, anyway you dont have to write a long explanation just a few hints and examples, and I’ll figure it out :) I just need to get a feel for when to use which.
Noch eine Frage. Man “wendete/hat gewendet” oder “wandte/hat gewandt”? Gibt es einen Unterschied im Gebrauch, oder hängt es von der Region ab, oder ist es völlig egal?
Die Versionen mit “a” gehen meiner Meinung nach nur, wenn du dich selber wendest.
– Ich habe mich an meinen Bruder gewandt. ( I turned to my brother for help)
– Er wandte sich zur Wand. (he turned to the wall )
Im Alltag verwenden Leute hier auch die “e”-Version.
Aber wenn du etwas wendest (ein Spiegelei oder ein Auto), dann geht NUR die “e”-Version
– Ich habe mein Steak gewandt… FALSCH
Hoffe, das hilft
wand (n.)
c. 1200, from Old Norse vondr “rod, switch” (cognate with Gothic wandus “rod,” Middle Swedish vander), from Proto-Germanic *wend- “to turn,” see wind (v.1)). The notion is of a bending, flexible stick. Compare cognate Old Norse veggr, Old English wag “wall,” Old Saxon, Dutch wand, Old High German want, German Wand “wall,” originally “wickerwork for making walls,” or “wall made of wattle-work” (an insight into early Germanic domestic architecture). Magic wand is attested from c. 1400 and shows the etymological sense of “suppleness” already had been lost.
Toller Blogpost! Eine kleine Frage/Korrektur. “Auswendig” ist ein Adverb (kein Adjektiv), oder?
Ja stimmt. Hab ich “Adjektiv” gesagt? Dann sorry :)
Emanuel.muss man nicht die verbe auswenden mit “lernen” oder erinneren” benutzen? As un learn or remember by heart?
Hi all! To anyone who donated extra money to help others create an account… THANK YOU!!! I am a student at the University of Rochester in upstate New York. This will be my 3rd year studying German, and this blog is a huge help. As a broke college student, I am so appreciative of you all who gave some extra money to help others (like me) become a member of this blog!
Vielen dank :)
I knew Deutsch was going to be trouble when I discovered that “unverwandt” is not the opposite of “verwandt”.
Hahaha… yeah, I totally forgot “unverwandt”.
Just for completion… the opposite of “verwandt” is …drumroll… “nicht verwandt”.
Jetzt wende ich es an.
Ops, ja richtig… den Fehler hab’ ich garnicht gesehen :)
Ich habe diese Lektion gelesen. Jetzt wende es an.
Perfekt!