schmerzen

See also: Schmerzen

German

Etymology

From Middle High German schmerzen, from Old High German smerzan, from Proto-Germanic *smertaną, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)merd- (“to bite, sting”). Cognate with Dutch smarten, English smart, Low German smerten, Danish smerte, Swedish smärta.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈʃmɛʁtsn/

• audio:

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Verb

1. to cause pain, to be painful, to ache or hurt

Usage notes

Although both schmerzen and verletzen are sometimes glossed as to hurt, schmerzen is more specific to pain, while verletzen carries additional connotations of to injure or to wound.

Conjugation

Template:de-conj-weak (But please keep in mind that „ich schmerze“ and „du schmerzt“ do not exist and do not make sense; at most: „Dein Schicksal schmerzt mich“ = “Your fate aches me / causes me pain”.)

Further reading

• “schmerzen” in Duden online