ein Jahr
/aɪ̯n jaːr/word by word
The English phrase "a year" is translated into German as ein Jahr.
ein Jahr is used to refer to the period of time it takes for the Earth to orbit the sun once.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase changes its form depending on its grammatical role in a sentence. Use ein Jahr for the nominative and accusative cases. The dative form is einem Jahr, which is used for phrases like "to/in a year". For the genitive case, meaning "of a year", use eines Jahres.
How do you pronounce it?
/aɪ̯n jaːr/
Did you know?
- The German word Jahr is a linguistic doublet of Uhr, which means 'clock' or 'hour'. Both words originally shared the same root describing a cycle or a turning point.
- In Germany, it is common to say frohes neues Jahr to wish someone a 'happy new year', but this is typically only said after the clock strikes midnight on December 31.
- German uses the term Lichtjahr for 'light year', but it is strictly used as a measure of distance, never as a measure of time.
Examples in context
- Ein Jahr ist schon um.A year has already passed.This sentence shows how to express that ein Jahr has passed.Tatoeba #8862650 by wolfgangth, translation #8312374 by Ergulis
- Das war nur ein Jahr her.That was only a year ago.This sentence is useful for saying how long ago something happened using ein Jahr.Tatoeba #1813369 by pne, translation #42639 by CK
- Ich war für ein Jahr weg.I was away for a year.This sentence demonstrates how to say you were gone for the duration of ein Jahr.Tatoeba #4732261 by bonny37, translation #3735454 by CK
- Das Jahr 2020 war wirklich aufregend, oder?The year 2020 was really exciting, right?
- 86 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lukas and Sarah are discussing their travel plans.
- LukasWollen wir ein Jahr lang reisen?Do we want to travel for a year?
- SarahJa, das wäre toll, Lukas.Yes, that would be great, Lukas.
- LukasIch brauche aber ein Jahr zum Sparen.But I need a year to save money.
- SarahKein Problem, wir haben Zeit.No problem, we have time.
Sources
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (ein, Jahr) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries Jahr, ein, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
