das längste Wort
The English phrase "the longest word" is translated into German as das längste Wort.
This phrase is used to refer to the word that contains the greatest number of letters within a specific language or text.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase uses the neuter definite article das because the noun Wort is a neuter noun. When expressing "of the longest word" in the genitive case, the phrase changes to des längsten Wortes.
Did you know?
- German once used the word Rindfleischetikettierungsüberwachungsaufgabenübertragungsgesetz as a legal term, which reached 63 letters.
- When discussing das längste Wort in a legal or technical context, Germans may use extremely long 'Schachtelwörter', or 'box words', which are nested nouns stacked inside one another.
- Because German can create new words by joining nouns together, the concept of das längste Wort is a moving target. New 'longest words' can be invented overnight by simply adding more nouns to a compound chain.
Examples in context
- Mit 25 Buchstaben ist „anticonstitutionnellement“ das längste Wort im Französischen.Having 25 letters, "anticonstitutionnellement" is the longest word in the French language.This sentence is useful for illustrating how to identify das längste Wort in a different language.Tatoeba #879234 by MUIRIEL, translation #825669 by odiernod
- Was ist das längste Wort in der deutschen Sprache?What is the longest word in the German language?
- Ich kann das längste Wort nicht einmal aussprechen.I cannot even pronounce the longest word.
Example conversation
Julia and Julian are studying for a German linguistics exam.
- JuliaJulian, kennst du das längste Wort in diesem Buch?Julian, do you know the longest word in this book?
- JulianNein, Julia, ich finde es viel zu kompliziert.No, Julia, I find it much too complicated.
- JuliaIch suche das längste Wort für meine Hausaufgabe.I am looking for the longest word for my homework.
- JulianVielleicht hilft dir ein Wörterbuch dabei.Maybe a dictionary will help you with that.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
