gefährlich
/ɡəˈfɛːɐ̯lɪç/
The English word "dangerous" is translated into German as gefährlich.
gefährlich is an adjective used to describe something that is causing danger or is ready to do harm or injury.
Meaning: causing danger, ready to do harm or injury (adj)
What does it mean word for word?
The adjective gefährlich is derived from the German noun Gefahr, which means "danger".
How does it change in a sentence?
As an adjective, gefährlich takes various endings (such as -e, -er, -es, -en) depending on the gender, number and case of the noun it modifies. To express different degrees of danger, use the comparative form gefährlicher for "more dangerous" and the superlative form am gefährlichsten.
How do you pronounce it?
/ɡəˈfɛːɐ̯lɪç/
Did you know?
- The phrase in Gefahr schweben meaning 'to be in danger' literally translates to 'to hover in danger', imagining the person floating precariously.
- While English uses 'dangerous' to describe a person's character, a German speaker might use gefährlich to describe an athlete's playing style. In sports, it describes someone who is highly effective and likely to score, rather than someone who is literally physically harmful.
- English speakers might be surprised to find that gefährlich shares a distant root with the English word 'fare' as in 'farewell' or 'wayfarer'.
Examples in context
- Was ist so gefährlich?What's so dangerous?This sentence is useful for asking what is dangerous using gefährlich.Tatoeba #8323054 by Luiaard, translation #2234090 by CK
- Das ist zu gefährlich.That's too dangerous.This sentence is useful for stating that something is too dangerous using gefährlich.Tatoeba #8493088 by Luiaard, translation #6849051 by CK
- Es ist gefährlich hier.It's dangerous here.This sentence is useful for saying it is dangerous in a specific location using gefährlich.Tatoeba #1909406 by Pfirsichbaeumchen, translation #1894589 by CK
- Das ist gefährlichThat is dangerous
- Diese Aktivität ist zu riskantThis activity is too risky
- Die Situation ist bedrohlichThe situation is dangerous
- Das sieht ziemlich brenzlig ausThat looks pretty dangerous
- 479 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Hannah and Julian are looking at a steep mountain trail.
- HannahSchau mal, der Weg sieht gefährlich aus.Look, the path looks dangerous.
- JulianIch glaube, wir sollten nicht dort gehen.I think we should not go there.
- HannahJa, es ist viel zu gefährlich für uns.Yes, it is much too dangerous for us.
- JulianDann suchen wir eine andere Route, Hannah.Then we will look for another route, Hannah.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “dangerous” translations and entries gefährlich, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
