entwaffnen
/ʔɛntˈvafnən/
The English verb "disarm" is translated into German as entwaffnen.
entwaffnen is used to mean the act of depriving someone or something of arms.
Meaning: to deprive of arms (verb)
How does it change in a sentence?
The past participle of entwaffnen is entwaffnet, which is used to form the perfect tense or to act as an adjective. When used as an inflected adjective to describe a person or group, such as in the phrase der entwaffnete Soldat, the form entwaffnete is used.
How do you pronounce it?
/ʔɛntˈvafnən/
Did you know?
- In a metaphorical sense, German can use entwaffnen to describe a conversation or a joke that 'disarms' someone by removing their hostility or defensiveness.
- The word entwaffnen shares its root with the English word 'weapon', as both stem from the Proto-Indo-European root for 'to strike' or 'to hit'.
- If you are describing an 'unarmed' person rather than a 'disarmed' one, German uses the word bewaffnungslos instead of a derivative of entwaffnen.
Examples in context
- Die Polizei muss den Verdächtigen entwaffnen.The police need to disarm the suspect.
- Die Streitkräfte hatten den Rebellen erfolgreich die Waffen abgenommen.The armed forces had successfully disarmed the rebels.
- Der Sicherheitsbeamte nahm dem Verdächtigen die Waffe ab.The security guard disarmed the suspect.
- Lass uns ihre Waffen wegnehmen, bevor sie Schaden anrichten.Let's disarm them before they cause any harm.
- Ich habe ihn erfolgreich entwaffnet.I successfully disarmed him.
- Entwaffne ihn, bevor er noch mehr Ärger macht.Disarm him before he causes any more trouble.
- Die Polizei konnte den Täter entwaffnen.The police were able to disarm the perpetrator.
- Die Polizei konnte den Täter schnell entwaffnen.The police were able to quickly disarm the perpetrator.
- Es ist wichtig, den Angreifer zu entwaffnen.It is important to disarm the attacker.
- Die Soldaten mussten den Feind entwaffnen.The soldiers had to disarm the enemy.
Example conversation
Felix and Sarah are discussing a scene in an action movie.
- FelixSchau, er versucht den Dieb zu entwaffnen!Look, he is trying to disarm the thief!
- SarahDas sieht viel zu gefährlich aus.That looks way too dangerous.
- FelixAber er schafft es fast.But he almost manages it.
- SarahHoffentlich geht dabei niemand verletzt aus.Hopefully nobody gets hurt in the process.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “disarm” translations and entries entwaffnen, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries entwaffnen, CC BY-SA 4.0.
