Hello everyone,
and welcome to a new episode of Prefix Verbs Explained, the series that is like that mayonnaise jar in the door compartment of our fridge. It has expired a loooong time ago, but it just stays there, watching comestibles come and go.
And that is not only an incredibly clever analogy, it also brings us right over to our “verb du jour” because today we’ll look at the meanings of
ablaufen
And to start you out, here are some examples for things that ablaufen: goat cheese, time, a conference, my bathtub.
Well, okay, actually my bathtub DOESN’T ablaufen properly.
So let’s jump right in.
I mean… the article. Not my bathtub.
Laufen means to walk, to run and the prefix ab can add two ideas to a verb: a notion of downward and a very very vague notion of separation, going away.
Those of you who are trained in mind yoga might already be able to sort of see a connection but the first use makes it pretty clear: ablaufen is the word for water running out of some sort of sink. It goes “away”, it separates from the sink by running downward into the drain. It’s also used in the context of water retreating from flooded areas, but it’s more common for sinks. In Germany, anyway.
- Nach dem Hurricane läuft das Wasser langsam ab.
- After the hurricane, the water recedes slowly. (I used to say “goes away”, hence the comments)
- “Du Schatz, die Badewanne läuft nicht ab.”
“Ja, ich weiß. Ich kauf morgen Abflussfrei.” - “Honey, the bathtub won’t empty out properly.”
“Yeah, I know. I’m gonna get drain cleaner tomorrow.”
As we can see in the second example, the word for the drain itself is Abfluss but Ablauf would be understood as well.
Oh and while we’re at it, another word for drain cleaner is Rohrreiniger. Would make a great Rammstein song title and it’s definitely a great word to practice your r with.
Anyway, the second big context for ablaufen is time running out, for all sorts of countdowns and periods.
- “Thomas!”
“Ja?”
“Deine Zeit auf dieser Couch ist abgelaufen.” - “Thomas!”
“Yes?
“Your time on this couch is over/has run out/ has come.”
- Die Bewerbungsfrist läuft morgen ab.
- The application period will end tomorrow.
- Nach Ablauf der Mindestlaufzeit verlängert sich der Vertrag um 12 Monate.
- After expiry of the minimum term the contract will extend itself/renew for 12 months.
And with that in mind, it makes perfect sense that ablaufen is also used in context of expiring food.
- Kann man abgelaufene Milch noch trinken?
- Can you drink expired milk?
- Die Kellnerin war so langsam… mein Latte Macchiato war abgelaufen, als ich ihn endlich bekommen hab.
- The waitress was so slow… my Latte Macchiato was expired when I finally got it.
And in that context, the noun is actually not Ablauf, though that would make sense. The real word for “best before date” is Mindesthaltbarkeitsdatum. A word so long, your milk might expire in your hand while you read it.
Cool.
Now, the uses we had so far were focused on stuff going away (water, time), but the last one we need to mention has the focus more on the journey. Ablaufen is used in a sense of events in a (planned) sequence. Or in simpler words… to go down.
- Die Polizei versucht zu rekonstruieren, wie der Einbruch genau abgelaufen ist.
- The police is trying to reconstruct how exactly the break in went down.
- Wie genau läuft eine Führerscheinprüfung ab?
- How exactly is the course of events at a driving test?
The corresponding noun der Ablauf is pretty common in a business context and since some of you have asked me for more business German, I’ll give you an example for that, too.
- Business-Einhorn findet die optimierten Abläufe in der Firma hammergeil.
- Business-unicorn finds the optimized processes in the company hella lit.
I’m not an expert on business German/English. But I think that’s roughly how it works.
Anyway, so those were the different uses of ablaufen. And if you’re familiar with the Ablauf of this show, you know what’s up next… exactly. The r-version.
herablaufen
For very very very reasonable reasons that no-one knows verbs with ab- as a prefix don’t have a “real” r-version. So there is no rablaufen. But there is herablaufen and just like r-versions its meaning is the literal, location-focused take on the verb-prefix combo. So the meaning of herablaufen is to walk/run down. Theoretically, it works for people running down stairs as well as for paint walking down walls. But in reali… what? … oh paint doesn’t walk down walls? Well, FYI, this one does because it is Spider-Paint. It can also run, of course. If it’s in a hurry.
Anyway, in reality, people use runterlaufen for these contexts. Herablaufen sounds a bit too fancy, high register and I can only imagine it in a book.
- Spider-Paint läuft die Glasfassade runter.
- Spider-Paint runs down the glass facade.
- Anastasia gähnte, als der Sekt an ihrem Bein herablief. Mr. Grey würde sich bald was neues ausdenken müssen.
- Anastasia yawned as the Champagne ran down her leg. Mr. Grey would have to think up something new very soon.
And that’s it for today :). This was our look at the various uses of ablaufen and I hope you could see that even though they’re all very different, they share a common theme.
As always, if you have any questions or suggestions about the meaning of ablaufen, just leave me a comment.
I hope you liked it and see you next time.
Oh by the way…
I have an assistant now. Yeay. That’s great because we can now do stuff I never had the time for.
And we’re planning to include a little quiz at the end of the articles, so you can check if you got the most important points. We’re still looking for a system but we thought to give you a little preview, so let me know how you like it, and if this is helpful :) !
** vocab **
ablaufen – expire (contracts, food), run out (time), proceed, go down (events in sequence)
X ist abgelaufen – X is expired (context of food)
der Ablauf – the course of events (various possible translations but the idea is always the same)
Ich habe ablaufen verstanden. Danke. Aber, was ist mit anderen prefixe. Es gibt uber 35 prefixe!!! Welche andere prefixe mit laufen sind vichtig?
verlaufen, auslaufen, der Anlauf, der Auflauf, weglaufen… there are indeed many, but it’s hard to judge which ones are important.
Hi there! Great posts! I had a lot of fun reading them although my German level is i’m lucky if at least A2. I kind of have a feeling (which is getting stronger as a read through comments) that these blogposts are intended for people who have been studying for quite a while :D
Anyway I really want to become a memeber and I already entered the “becomeamember” page, but was quite discouraged by a form where you have to enter you credit card info. Is there a more secure way… maybe..? Don’t know about Germany, but I’m from Russia and I rarely see these kinds of forms on the internet and even my mom would think 30 times before using it… :)
Hi Anna, glad to hear you enjoy the site :). And no, I usually don’t have a specific level in mind when I write the article. Sure, some things and structures will be a bit too difficult, but if you leave the article having learned something OR you have a particular question, then it has done its job. Don’t worry about the comments too much. Yes, there are advanced readers but also absolute beginners. So if you feel an article is too difficult, come back later. If you feel like you’re learning, keep going.
Now, for the credit card… I am using the Stripe gateway which is a secure service and it’s one of the biggest players as far as I know. You can also pay using Paypal if you have it, OR you can pay by credit card using PayPal as a payment handler. Just click “Paypal” during the payment process and it’ll take you to their server where you do all the rest.
None of the data is stored on my site so even if I get hacked, the sensitive data is save.
Now, I know everyone can say that and my credit card number window does look a bit makeshift. But that’s the only option I have other than a normal bank tranfer… which is fine in the EU but gets complicated outside of it.
Let me know what you think :)
No one would say “How exactly is the course of events at a driving test?”. In England we would probably say “What happens during the driving test?” For some reason we always use the definite article as in “the driving test”. Probably because there is only one driving test.
Wegen dem Business German… Hab mich totgelacht. Hut ab.
Gute Idee, ich mag die Pruefung gern! Ich habe 100% erzielt… was kriege ich als Preis?
Preise gibt’s bei 110% :)
Hats off to the assistent! The quiz is Der Hammer!
Sag ich ihr :)
Das Quiz ist sehr hilfreich!!
Um, for those of us who are boring and not quite as young, what on earth does “hella lit” mean?!
It’s a fad youth term for “rad, fly, cool, great”. It also works without “hella”. So something can just be “lit”, or “so lit”. It started getting popular about 3 years ago, I believe, and Youtube is full of it. I used it, because I thought the contrast was funny.
Mega-maxi-hella-lit!
Was wird man so meinen mit?
Nolens-volens meist verwendet
Esoterik und informal wird
ein Satz beendet!
Die Jugendzeit ”so lit”’ und geil,
zu schnell vorüber- die Kurzweil –
so ”leiwand” war’s, ist jetzt abgelaufen
Danach kommt das ”stockfade” Amtsdeutsch
damit zu raufen!
I think at last I finally get
the hazy meaning of Denglisch “lit”!
And hella-hörig now I “see”
”hella” is no longer
All Greek to me!
Wait, why is “lit” Denglish :D? Und was ist “Leiwand”?
leiwand (Deutsch)
Wortart: Adjektiv
Synonyme:
cool, gut, großartig, klasse, prima, super
Gegensatzwörter: Schas (Scheiß)
Anwendungsbeispiele:
Scheefahren Weil ich weiß ++++Scheefahren ist das leiwandste was man sich nur vorstellen kann +++
1) „Weil i wü / schifoan – schifoan – schifoan / weil Schifoan is des Leiwandste / was ma si nur vorstellen kann“ (Songtext von Wolfgang Ambros, „Schifoan“)
Wortbedeutung/Definition:
1) dialektal (österreichisch) sehr gut, gefallend; (auch ironisch)
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Vielen Dank für den Kommentar.
Na, das hin und her über ‘lit’ und hammerkrass war für mich ein D-E Strudel im Kopf geworden.
Bei uns gibt es Kalifornien und dann die übrigen 49 Bundesstaaten. “hellalit” kommt ursprünglich aus Oakland
habe ich vor kurzem darüber gelesen.
Bisher finde ich sonst niemand in (Westen)Deutschland außer Dir, den hammerkrass kennt.
Höchstens: DAS! ist der Hammer! oder Hammerhart!
Ich habe immer Interesse für Deutsche Mundart – Nord und Süd – neu und alt.
Ich finde Deine Schreibweise als Ossie oft auch interessant. (gar nicht negativ gemeint)
Kennst Du den Ausdruck “Piefke Deutsch”? “snooty prussian German language” Sicher oder?
Piefka ist “unter dem Weißwurst Äquator” (Bavarian Border) fast ein Schimpfwort.
Wenn ich fragen darf? Haben Deine Eltern in der Schulzeit pflichtmäßig Russich studieren müssen?
Um Englisch in der DDR zu studieren war erst Russisch zu “bestehen”. Stimmt es?
Kennst Du -auch südlich-
“fad” – langweilig
“stockfad” kotzlangweilig ?
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Aus dem Kommersbuch auch als “Bierbibel” bekannt.
Hast Du zufällig eines ?
Dieses Lied habe ich sehr gern.
von – Otto Kamp 1885
“O wonnevolle Jugendzeit”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2X0ClbZMeM&list=RDy2X0ClbZMeM&start_radio=1
O wonnevolle Jugendzeit,
Mit Freuden ohne Ende,
Mit Minnefahrten weit und breit,
Wo sich die schönste fände.
Ich grüße dich du junges Blut,
Bin jedem hübschen Mädche (Weibe) gut,
Refrain:
Doch keine ist so nett so fein,
Wie meiner Wirtin Töchterlein,
Doch keine ist aequalis,
Der filia hospitalis.
2. Ich kam als krasser Fuchs hierher
Und spähte in den Gassen,
Wo mir ein Bett und Zimmer wär’,
Den langen Leib zu fassen.
Fand Sofa nicht noch Stiefelknecht,
Und doch war mir die Bude recht,
Refrain “denn”
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Grüße aus der Gaße!
AG
Excellent. So I’m learning my own language as well as German! I shall try dropping this into conversation with my kids.
Oh please do and let us know how they reacted :D
“Anastasia gähnte, als der Sekt an ihrem Bein herablief. Mr. Grey würde sich bald was neues ausdenken müssen.” This, in a nutshell explains why learning German the Emanuelway is more than plugging through Duolingo!
Danke :)
Ich habe Deutsch in der Schule in Dänemark gelernt. Ich habe nicht abgelaufen bentuzten, aber jetzt kenne ich das Wort :) Vielen Dank
*benutzt :)
Danke :) Ist es Richtig? “Ich habe nicht abgelaufen benutzt”
Lieber “Ich habe ‘abgelaufen’ nicht benutzt”.
Hey, there. Just a random (not for long) reader here. I’m still laughing at the Rammstein nod.
Anyway, I’m a beginner at German (and a non-English native while we’re at it), and I found this really enlightening. So thanks! Oh, and those were some really good examples and amazing translations (hella lit!!).
Danke, freut mich, dass es dir gefallen hat :):
Thanks, I’m happy that you liked it.
Der Käse des Goaßes
oft stinker – dufter
Gern geschlungen
bei Kreuzberg-Hipster-hufter!
Meck! Meck! Meck!
Frage an den Chef: oder die Souschefin. Bitte sehr-
Wann soll man unbedingt ablaufen statt auslaufen verwenden? Oder umgekehrt?
Das Boot darf heute nicht auslaufen weil gestern der Schlepper Termin abgelaufen war.
?? Das Boot darf heute nicht ablaufen weil gestern der Termin ausgelaufen war.??? Klingt mir falsch-komisch???
Gute Frage!
Für Boote und Schiffe definitiv immer “auslaufen” und für Termine “ablaufen”. “auslaufen” passt für ein Projekt, zum Beispiel.
– Das Projekt wird nicht verlängert und läuft im Februar aus.
“ablaufen” ist verständlich, aber klingt nicht so gut, da das Projekt eher ein Prozess ist, und da könnte man an das andere “ablaufen” denken (to unfold, to go down).
Hoffe, das hilft!
Luuurve the quiz!
Grrrrrraaayt :D
Crystal clear explanations! I was able to grasp all the subtle concepts, thank you so much for that.
By the way, I loved the quiz and the fact that the key was also given so we could check our answers; this is essential, in my opinion as it gives us more self-confidence in the progress being made and also the chance to learn from any possible mistakes.
An interesting one I learned recently is “jdm den Rang ablaufen”, which sort of means to surpass or outperform sb, as I understand it. Vorsicht! The past is conjugated with haben, e.g., ich habe ihm den Rang abgelaufen.
How would you describe the difference between ablaufen and sich abspielen, in the context of a sequence of events?
Off, good question!
“sich abspielen” is NOT about a process but only about something happening. So it doesn’t sound technical or formal or planned at all. It can still be used for planned things, but it’s basically the perspective of a spectator.
“ablaufen” has the focus on the process, the time table, the progression and it does sound technical and formal at times. There is an overlap but at least the more official “ablaufen” can not be replaced with “sich abspielen”.
Does that help a little?
Yes, thanks.
Useful and entertaining as always, including the questions at the end. One thing I didn’t get though was in your intro
Ja, es sind immer noch welche da…
I know the words and I checked with the translation but could just not configure the meaning. Anyone else struggle ? Any help gratefully received.
Are you thrown of by the “es”?
Die kleine Prüfung war sehr instrukiv. Gute Idee.
Ich glaube, ich habe schon ablaufen in diesem Kontext gehört : In den Ferien gab es so viele leckere Dinge zu essen, dass ich heute 4 Kilo mehr wiege, als vor Weihnachten. Aber ich werde sie ablaufen. (walk them off ) Ist es möglich, es so zu sagen oder habe ich falsch verstanden?
Ich hätte auch „recede” für das Wasser nach dem Hurricane gesagt.
Vielen Dank für den Quiz! Macht mir Spaß!
Wie heißt „a receding hairline” auf Deutsch?
Oh ja, dieses “ablaufen” versteht jeder Deutsch Muttersprachler sofort. Aber es ist super super selten, deshalb habe ich es nicht erwähnt.
Was “receding hairline” angeht… dafür haben wir keine gute Übersetzung. Es gibt “die Geheimratsecken”, which are the corners at the forehead that recede first and they can “wachsen” but that’s all I can think of.
Maybe since the time of hourglasses* we have seen time run down.
* two glass globes connected where the sand trickles down at a set rate to mark time passing
Oh wow, never thought of that, but this is as literal as it gets. Basically the same as water in a sink :).
Großartiger Artikel wie immer, Emmanuel! Ich mag auch das Quiz am Ende.
Eine kleine Korrectur: Rohrreiniger
Ups, ja danke!