Unit 5: Prepositions, Reflexives
7. Noun Formation
Word Formation
These sections of the textbook help improve your speed during the skimming phase of reading and help you gradually build vocabulary.
Knowing how words are formed is most helpful in learning vocabulary and preparing yourself to be able to determine the meaning of new vocabulary. It is very useful to know that German forms nouns from verbs, from adjectives, and from adding suffixes to other nouns and adjectives among other ways. Study the following examples of word relationships, and as you work on translating the exercises in this book, look for possible connections between words. Check your guesses in the dictionary and list related words together for purposes of learning them more quickly. Remember, these are just some examples; there are thousands of words formed in these various ways.
Noun – Verb Relationships
Related to simple verbs:
| Noun | Verb |
|---|---|
| das Band (string / band) | binden |
| die Bindung (bond / binding) | binden |
| die Fahrt (drive / ride) | fahren |
| die Reise (journey) | reisen |
| der Spruch (saying) | sprechen |
Related to verbs with prefixes:
| Noun | Verb |
|---|---|
| die Abfahrt (departure) | abfahren |
| der Ausgang (exit) | ausgehen |
| der Eingang (entrance | eingehen |
| der Gewinn (gain / winning) | gewinnen |
| der Niedergang (decline) | niedergehen |
| der Übergang (crossing) | übergehen |
| der Umgang (circuit) | umgehen |
| der Verstand (reason) | verstehen |
| der Widerstand (resistance) | widerstehen |
Noun – Adjective Relationships
| Noun | Adjective |
|---|---|
| die Breite (breadth) | breit |
| die Dicke (thickness) | dick |
| die Größe (size) | groß |
| die Länge (length) | lang |
| die Kälte (cold) | kalt |
| die Röte (redness) | rot |
Noun Suffixes
-
–chen and –lein (diminutives, always neuter)
Bettchen (little bed) Bett Städtlein (little town) Stadt -
–er denotes “doer” or “that which does”
These are always masculine, but can take feminine form with -in ending if appropriate (see number 4 below).
Musiker (musician) Musik Tänzer (dancer) tanzen Zeiger (pointer / indicator) zeigen -
–heit and –keit denotes “state of being” (always feminine)
Abhängigkeit (dependence) abhängig Aufmerksamkeit (attentiveness) aufmerksam Freiheit (freedom) frei Gesundheit (health) gesund Schönheit (beauty) schön -
–in denotes females
Lehrerin (female teacher) Lehrer Professorin (female professor) Professor -
–schaft denotes “relationship,” “collective state” (always feminine)
Bruderschaft (brotherhood) Bruder Freundschaft (friendship Freund Landschaft (landscape) Land Wissenschaft (science) wissen -
–tum denotes “condition”
der Reichtum (wealth / richness) reich das Wachstum (growth) wachsen -
–ung (always feminine)
Sammlung (collection) sammeln Vergrößerung (enlargement) vergrößern Zeitung (newspaper) Zeit
The topic of word formation will continue to be covered throughout later units to help you both with building vocabulary and with quickly guessing the meaning of unfamiliar words.
