Hello everyone,
And welcome to our German word of the Day, today with a big fat dump of
boredom!
And by boredom I mean of course useful vocabulary, because today we’ll talk about the verb
schneiden
schneiden is the German word for to cut, so it’s definitely a nice one to have.
But of course, like many German verbs, schneiden comes with a fine selection of relatives and prefix versions and boy oh boy… there’s an absolute treasure trove of useful words waiting for us.
Too much for one session, in fact. Like… the article got longer and longer and longer and eventually I decided to cut it into two parts.
Today, we’ll focus on schneiden itself and some nouns and in part two, will go through the various prefix versions.
So let’s … uh… cut straight to the chase and dive right in :)
***
Quick word about the origin first.
to cut and schneiden are basically each other’s brother from another mother, meaning that they come from two separate Germanic families but both families were at their core about cutting.
And then, German and English each kind of picked one of the families and completely ignored the other. So there aren’t really any relatives to to cut in German, and English doesn’t really know any relatives to schneiden. Well, except Schnitzel, but that’s a German word essentially.
Anyway, let’s looks at some examples.
- Thomas schneidet den Apfel in zwei Teile.
- Thomas cuts the apple into two pieces.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
- Ich habe mich beim Rasieren geschnitten.
- I cut myself while shaving.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
- Ich habe mich in den Finger geschnitten.
- I cut my finger.
(“I cut myself in the finger.”) - Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
Little side note about the last example: you may also hear this one with mir instead of mich.
- Ich habe mir in den Finger geschnitten.
In fact, I’d say that both versions are equally common. But the version with mir ONLY works if you also specify the “location” of the cut. Like we did here with “in den Finger”.
So in the next example, mir would NOT work because the location is missing.
- Ich habe mich am Papier geschnitten.
- I cut myself on the paper.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
And I know that some of you are feeling a little anxiety right now, as you’re reading this. So please let me tell you… you really do NOT need to remember this detail about mir and mich. I just wanted to mention it for completion and also so you heard it once.
Now you heard it, and you can let it go. It’ll come back in due time.
Just stick with mich, to be on the safe side. Or play around and make mistakes, it’s not a big deal. But don’t overthink it – that’ll just cause your brain to get “tense” and we want our brains to chill. At least when we’re actually speaking the language.
Anyway, now, besides the basic sense of actual cutting, schneiden of course has a number of figurative uses, as well, but I think the logic is not too obscure for most of them.
- Maria schneidet ihr neues Youtube-Video.
- Maria edits her new Youtube video.
(analogous to English “cut”)
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
- Die Wohnung ist zwar klein, aber super geschnitten.
- The apartment is small, but the floor plan/layout is perfect.
(“the apartment is cut well”) - Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
- Wenn du denkst, dass ich immer abwasche, dann hast du dich geschnitten.
- If you think, I’ll always do the dishes, then you’re very much mistaken.
(fixed expression, quite common)
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
When you look in a dictionary, you can find quite a few more translation options that might confuse you, but keep in mind that those are REALLY specific. Like… for example schneiden CAN mean to cross, but that’s ONLY used in the context of two parallels crossing.
“Emanuel, parallels don’t cross.”
Quiet, Euklid!! Your boomer geometry is not relevant here.
Seriously though… you do NOT need to know all the various translations that schneiden might have once per year.
I think it’s best to just remember to cut and just keep an open mind that schneiden MAY pop up in a context where you wouldn’t expect it.
Cool.
So that’s the verb itself.
Now, let’s check out the relatives.
Related words to “schneiden”
The main noun for schneiden is der Schnitt. And what I just said about the verb also applies to the noun. So it’s okay to think about it simply as the cut, so long as you’re chill about it, if you see it with a different translation every now and then. The connection to cutting is always there in some way.
- Der Schnitt ist nicht tief.
- The cut is not deep.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
- Maria war beim Frisör und hat sich den Karen-Schnitt geholt.
- Maria was at the hairdresser and got the Karen cut.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
- Dieses Hemd hat einen komischen Schnitt.
- This t-shirt has a weird cut/“shape”.
(Not sure what the best word is in English here. It’s the “layout” of the shirt)
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
- Der Film gewinnt einen Award für besten Schnitt.
- The movie wins a price for best editing.
- Dieser Smart-Home-Mülleimer verfügt über eine USB-Schnittstelle. So können sie den Müll bequem einfach runterladen, statt ihn rauszubringen.
- This smart home trash can has a USB port. So you can conveniently download the trash instead of taking it out.
The plural of Schnitt is die Schnitte, by the way.
And just because you might be really confused one day – die Schnitte is also a SINGULAR word – a colloquial word for a slice of bread with something on it (or a waffle in Austria, I think), and a colloquial, slightly disrespectful term for an attractive woman.
Both are a bit old fashioned though and are slowly falling out of use.
There are way more useful schneiden-relatives.
And instead of going over them with examples, like I usually do, I actually want to make this a bit more “active”. So I’ll just give you the words and phrases along with a hint, and I’m sure you can figure out the translations yourself ;)
- schnitzen (done to wood)
- zweischneidiges Schwert (not hint here :)
- der Schneider (bespoke suit)
- der Kaiserschnitt (doctors do it)
- Bolzenschneider (Used for stealing bikes)
- windschnittig (bullet train in Japan)
- auf Messers Schneide (really close call)
- Schneidezahn (celebrities have them “done” so they’re more shiny)
- der Schnittlauch (like scallions but way smaller)
And, could you figure them out?
Now, just to be sure… you do NOT have to feel like “Oh, I need to remember all these.”
If you do, that’s great, but the main point is that you walk away with a certain confidence, like “I got this! I can figure them out in context when I see them.”
There’s no real gain in actively “learning” der Schneider for instance or die Schneide.
I mean, unless you’re at C1 already and you’re bored because German doesn’t challenge you anymore :)
Anyway, we’re almost done but I actually want to add one more fairly common meaning of der Schnitt.
- Eine Stunde Arbeit dauert im Schnitt eine Stunde.
- One hour of works takes on average an hour.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
You’re probably surprised, and I totally get it. Me too, I was like “Whaaaat” but it’s true. Scientists have conducted studies and an hour of work really does take an hour on average.
This lines up too well to be a coincidence, in my opinion! Someone made it that way, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the lizzard eli…
“Hey Emanuel, we’re actually surprised about Schnitt meaning average.”
Ohhh… uhm, I’m sorry.
So yes, Schnitt and especially the phrase im Schnitt is about the idea of average, in the statistical sense.
The reason for that is the … a prefix verb.
And that’s where we’ll pick up in part two :).
Don’t spoil it in the comments please.
For today, we’ve done enough. This was our look at the verb schneiden and some of its relatives.
Now, I couldn’t really think of enough questions to ask that are not filler, so we’ll skip the quiz this time. But as usual, if you have any questions about schneiden so far, just leave me a comment. I hope you liked it and I’ll see you next time, in part two.
Bis dann.
Find part two here:
Audio Speed
Dark Mode
The expression “ du hast dich geschnitten” can be used also to replace irren sich or I can use it just with the construction “wenn du denkst… dann hast du dich geschnitten”. Danke!
Yup, it’s pretty common, in the sense of “then you’re mistaken”. That’s a similar vibe.
Ich habe diesen großartigen Blog seit Monaten nicht gelesen, und er zeigt an, dass ich ihn zweimal pro Woche gelesen habe. Danke für das praktische Deutsch.
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There were some of the example sentences without audio. That’s a really nice feature to hear the German.
Yeah, those are the ones I put in last minute. I usually try to not do that, but I just couldn’t help but put them in here.
I really want to thank those who help people like me, who cannot pay for memberships due to reasons beyond our control. You guys make the world a better place and restore my faith in humanity once again.
If one day I earn my own money, I want to help people, just like you do. Not by giving money directly, but by funding their studies. I wish the best for you all.
You can be sure that I will not waste your efforts. I will utilize my scholarship to its fullest potential. Thanks again!
I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to the wonderful members who contributed extra to sponsor others. I just received my membership subscription and I’m very grateful for the opportunity to learn with your support. Thank you!
Was wollte der durchschnittliche Schnitzelbaenkler tun, um an einem Bastelwettbewerb einen schneidigen Auftritt zu machen? Nichts, denn dieser Wettbewerb ueberschneidet sich mit einem Termin beim Schneider, aber dem Schnitzelbaenkler gefaellt der Zuschnitt nicht! Nun, lass uns mal eben ein anderes Thema anschneiden:-)
Thank you Mr.Emanuel for good article about “schneiden “. I am a new member
and I want take this opportunity to thank Mr.Emanuel and the community team especially the sponsors who support other to learn.
Not sure how common that is, but I like that expression. It paints a picture. Kind of like “Schneidezahn.” “Incisor” is dry and technical, and “front teeth” doesn’t have much of a ring to it.
I only know it as “auf den Leibe geschneidert” though I would understand the other one as well. It’s not common, but I do think I hear it in daily life every now and then. NOT in the context of actual clothes though. That would sound weird.
As for “Schneidezahn”… I used to like the word until I realized that to me personally, what this tooth does is not actually “schneiden”. I have some mixed feelings ever since (I’m not kidding).
I guess it got its name from “die Schneide” though, because it has a “blade”.
Don’t forget either “massgeschneiderte Anzuege” or “custom made suits”. “SchneideRn” vs. “schneiden” has a slightly different meaning.
“Tailored” is the word you want (tailor = Schneider), also for figurative uses:
Exactly. Custom vs. tailor-made mean essentially the same.
Yeah, no functional difference in meaning at all. I like “to tailor something [to someone, someone’s needs]” better than “customize” or “custom-make,” though – just a little more elegant, less tech-y maybe?
There’s also “bespoke” (adjective only), which has the same basic meaning.
….as opposed then to “bespoken” as in the hyperformal of “spoken for”, perhaps though only in the UK
To me, that mostly sounds archaic. I’ve only heard that in written British English from around the 1500-1600’s. Usually with the meaning “someone was spoken to.” And in the odd bit of modern poetry, where it can have different meanings.
I do see one result on a forum that says “he is bespoken at the moment.” Meaning he’s taken. That’s colloquial though. It shows up with “un hoity toity” :)
Yeah, you’ll occasionally see “bespeak” in a higher register, most commonly (in my experience) with the meaning “indicate” or similar:
Thomas’ concern for Maria bespeaks certain unresolved feelings toward her.I think I’d understand the “bespoken” = “spoken for” usage, but I don’t think I’ve ever come across it.
I’d venture to guess that at this point in linguistic history, the adjective “bespoke” is the most commonly used member of the “bespeak” family, certainly in the US.
Eine kleine Korrektur:
The movie wins a *price* prize for best editing.
PS: Emanuel, dein Englisch ist der Hammer! Ich hoffe, dass mein Deutsch eines Tages nur halb so gut sein wird wie es ist!
Stimmt! Er hat ein geschliffenes Amerikanisch, kann fast nahetlos von Thema zu Thema springen, gleichzeitig auf der entsprechenden Stilebene bleiben.
Darf ich eine Anregung geben? Um zu üben, versuche ich oft, die englische Version der Beispielsätze in meinem Kopf ins Deutsche zu übersetzen, bevor ich mir das deutsche Original ansehe. Könnte das Deutsche ausgeblendet, aber durch Anklicken einer Schaltfläche sichtbar gemacht werden, um dies zu erleichtern?
Working on it now!
Hallo,
Let’s schneiden a few typos out of the article:
“the various prefix version” (the various prefix versions)
“cause your to brain to get “tense”” (cause your brain to get “tense”)
“a few more translations options” (a few more translation options)
Can’t make any sense of the Schneidezahn, the dictionary returns incisors, so are people getting their incisors done?!?
Good article, I thought I knew a lot about schneiden, but apparently there’s lots more to it than I thought :)
Bis bald!
What I meant about incisors is to have them straightened and bleached. In German you could say “Ich lasse mir die Zähne machen.” and people would gather from context what you mean by that. Is there a similarly generic way in English?
I don’t know why, given that there really is no etymological overlap, but the schneiden family has always been pretty easy and intuitive for me as an English speaker.
Maybe it’s that Schnitt sounds exactly like a pair of scissors at work: *schnitt*schnitt*schnitt*
Wow, I never noticed that, but you’re right!!!
The common German onomatopoeia is “schnipp schnapp” but “schnitt schnitt” sounds way more like it.
…and unlike schneiden, schnipp and schnapp have lovely English equivalents! However, it was only after ‘discovering’ ‘das Schnäppchen’ that I learned of the British ‘snip’. ‘Vulgar’ Americans still prefer finding ‘a steal’.
Oh Brits say “that’s a snip” for a Schnäppchen? That’s way cute! Not as cute as “Schnäppchen” of course :)
I know that we’re not allowed to fixate on the “mir” versus “mich” usage outlined above (and I wouldn’t dream of doing so!) but I have to wonder whether using “mir” here is perhaps a cross-infection from sentences such as those where someone breaks a leg (Ich habe mir das Bein gebrochen), or similar constructions (Ich lasse mir später die Haare schneiden), where there’s no preposition required? Anyway, moving on!
No use telling us Duolingo-babies not to remember “der Schneider”, as it’s already been hammered home, possibly due to “Das tapfere Schneiderlein”. Oh how we *loves* our Kinder- und Hausmärchen, particularly “Der Froschkönig” and “Rotkäppchen”. Have I mentioned how much we all curse when there’s another effing section of the course focused on “Der (effing) Froschkönig” or that “böse, (oder vielleicht *einsam*?) Wolf”?
A few edges needing a little smoothing…
==================
go through the varios prefix version. => go through the vario*u*s prefix version*s*.
I cut himself while shaving. => I cut *myself* while shaving.
I cut myself in the finger. => This expression doesn’t work (for me) at all. We’d either use the super-simple “I cut my finger”, or perhaps “I cut *into* my finger”.
This t-shirt has a a weird “shape” => This t-shirt has a ** weird “shape” (doubled “a”, and yeah, I’d also go for “weird cut” here)
celebreties get them => celebr*i*ties get them
Also, “celebrities get/have them done” – right? We’re talking about cosmetic dentistry, not the prevalence of dentures among A-listers?
I’m not much chop with celebrities, um ehrlich zu sein, and have pretty much no notion why they’d be getting incisors made and/or done any more than anyone else, unless perhaps the new ones are aus Gold?
I meant that they get them “rearranged” and bleached. What would be the proper term, if it’s not “have them made”.
For existing teeth, you could use ‘done’, ‘fixed’ or ‘seen to’ (e.g. “I’m getting/having my teeth done.”, “I’m getting/having my teeth fixed.” or “I’m getting/having my teeth seen to.”).
I would only say “I’m having my teeth made” if they were a set of dentures and my interlocutor already knew about them. When mentioning them for the first time, I would say “I’m getting/having some new teeth made.” or “I’m getting/having a new set of teeth made.”
Yep, as others have mentioned, “done” is probably the boring-but-usual verb to use here. Along the lines of “I’m getting my hair done tomorrow”, “I’m going to get my nails done next week”. “We’re having the front garden done” (ie, redesigned and reimplemented). In each case there are obviously more specific ways of saying things, but the generic kinda sorta separable(ish-ish) verb here is “donegetting” ;-)
“Holy Mother of Zeus, what have you DONE?!”
“Your hair, mam, this is a hair dresser.”
“But… look at this stork nest, what have you done?!?!”
Nice example for when “machen” and “tun” are different.
“gemacht” = factual “done”
“getan” = the other “done”
Ooooh, interesting. The dictionary says “tun” is less hands on than “machen.” I think I get it, in a way, but it feels kind of elusive. Sort of like “stellen” and “legen.” So examples like this are really interesting (and helpful).
I think “stellen” vs “legen” is WAY more defined than “machen” vs “tun” though. There’s some underlying logic for the former pair while for “machen” and “tun”, it’s mostly “what’s idiomatic” with some elements of “hands on”-ness.
Totally!! “stellen” and “legen” are positional opposites and way less slippery to get a handle on.
“Du, Carola?! Mensch, ich fress’ einen Besen, was TUST du hier denn hier?”
“Ich arbeite bei der DB”
“Oh, und was MACHST du schon?”
“Ich bin Bankkauffrau.”
Tun = to be in the process of some activity
Machen = to undertake a repeated, successive action or work.
Often the distinction eludes first time learners, as even in German, there seem as many exceptions to the rule as instances of it:-)
The second speaker might easily have asked in more colloquial German: “Oh, was arbeitest du schon?”
Quick side question… why do you use “schon” here?
I know I tend to overuse those upgraders. Perhaps an extension of my spoken language:-)
Oh, yes I also see a repeat typo on line one, “hier” twice. Apologies, but often I’m under time pressure.
Yes, getting them all perfectly lined up and white like they’re in a Leni Riefensta… oh, too far maybe :D.
Yeah, definitely “done,” but dentures would be pretty funny. Botox, hair extensions, dentures. Standard A-list packet :)
“Why more and more Gen Z influencers are getting “vintage teeth” and why you should probably too”
George Washington-style but made of only sustainably harvested wood
Recycled ocean plastic. It’s Gen Z!
Polished with artisanal microplastics, for that natural pearly glow!
“artisanal microplastics”
XD XD XD
Love it!!
:D
Regarding the “mir” vs “mich” issue:
Very very yes, though I would call it cross pollination, not cross infection. I like the “mir” phrasings very much :).
But seriously… it’s the same core theme of something happening or being done to you (possibly by you). I would also add “Ich wasche mir die Hände.” here.
Regarding the Duolingo language learning simulator game:
Do they use fairytales now?! How annoying!!! I would hate that soo so much.
I can happily get on board with *pollination*. And yep, hand-washing joins the party, and “ich putze mir die Zähne” is about to happen at this end, “Du rasierst dir die Achseln” (somewhat strangely –to me at least– prevalent among young European men, but “De gustibus non est disputandum”, wie immer). Etc, etc…
As for Duolingo, I wouldn’t mind so much if they really did use examples from the fairy tales(*), including some extended use of the Präteritum, but the tales are pretty much just used as a framing for asking rather banal questions about the wolf’s motives, the fact that der Jäger hat die Oma schnarchen gehört or the fate of die (blöde) goldene Kugel.
(*) I actually love “der Froschkönig”, but prefer its alternative name “der treue Heinrich”: he’s the hero here!
Makes me wonder… how do you know Down Under?
I got to be quick before the TMI police comes, but… I am waxing mine. Myself. Feels very manly and womanly at the same time.
My Bulgarian girlfriend made me try and it’s kind of nice.
As for the fairytales: I would guess that it’s a right’s issue. They cannot use the original Grimm text, as that would be just too difficult and weird for most learners. So they’d need to use a “re-telling” and that’ll then be intellectual property of the reteller.
Haha… I have my sources, including the sometimes-fun, often tedious “chaturbate”, but it was something I’d noticed during my occasional pre-covid continental sojourns (2016-2019… RIP :-/ ).
As for the fairy tales: go original or go home! There’s little in this world more saccharine and galling than Disney’s bleached and sanitised versions of these tales. Bring on the ugly stepsisters getting their mother to cut off part of their heel so as to fit in the shoe (“Hau ein Stück von der Ferse ab”), and being spotted bleeding by the pesky doves (“Rucke die guh, rucke die guh, Blut ist im Schuh”), and then finally having their eyes pecked out one by one as payment für ihre Bosheit und Falschheit! Good times!
Well, as a scientist in at least spirit (if not also profession), you will know that the subset of men in “the genre” does not represent the actual copulus… I mean populus. Neither in length, nor girth, nor Behaarung.
I think the best source (besides sojourns) is trash TV. Shows like Paradise Hotel or Ex on the Beach. And yeah, many of the men there do have shaved armpits. But it’s the same in the US counterparts of those shows.
Yeah, I wouldn’t dream of shaming the world of statistics by making such a claim based on *observations* of such a pre/self-selected assemblage of men-folk, whether on chaturbate or those lamentable, highly scripted, relationship irreality shows(#). It was actually the *chat* half of chaturbate that was used in the production of these unholy observations (in collaboration with young men from Estonia, Russia, Germany, France, in the main)! Still unrepresentative, no doubt, but much broader in scope.
(#) “Adam sucht Eva” was actually shown on one of Australia’s public broadcasters a year or so ago, with English subtitles, but the original audio. It was surprisingly funny, and not a bad way to tune the ear to the rhythms of German banter.
I would love to watch trash TV like that with subtitles in a language I want to learn :)
Oh and shoutout for knowing “Rucke die guh, rucke die guh”… it’s THE BEST onomatopoeia for pigeons, imo!
Agreed, it’s pretty damned close! Sadly, all the credit goes to the Brothers Grimm: I just copied it from the original text of “Aschenputtel”. That said, it’s now firmly wedged in the German section of my memory.
This t-shirt has a a weird “shape”.
(Not sure what the best word is in English here. It’s the “layout” of the shirt)
You can say “cut”
Same as in German “der Zuschnitt” of a garment.Only key difference is here that German requires the separable prefix attached to the verb in order to clarify the latter’s function as a way of establishing meaning. In English, “cut” alone is perfectly correct and needs no added prefix to support the contextual meaning.