anstehen

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See also: Anstehen

German

Etymology

From Middle High German anestān. Equivalent to an- +‎ stehen.

Pronunciation

  • Audio:(file)

Verb

anstehen (irregular strong, third-person singular present steht an, past tense stand an, past participle angestanden, past subjunctive stände an or stünde an, auxiliary haben or sein)

  1. (intransitive) to stand in a queue
    Entschuldigung. Stehen Sie an?Sorry, are you in the queue?
  2. (intransitive) to be pending, to be upcoming, to be on the agenda, to be due
    zum Verkauf anstehento be up for sale
    Demnächst stehen wieder Wahlen an.Elections are coming up again soon.
    Was steht heute an?What's on the agenda today?
    Gestern wäre die Buchhaltung angestanden.Bookkeeping was due yesterday.
    Das ist wichtig, das dürfen wir nicht anstehen lassen.This is important, we can't let it wait.
  3. (intransitive, dated) to befit
    Es steht dem Kanzler der Bundesrepublik Deutschland nicht gut an, sich auf ein Stühlchen zu setzen und zu warten, bis ihm das Wort erteilt wird.It is not befitting for the chancellor of Germany to be sat on a small chair, waiting for permission to speak.
  4. (intransitive) (mining, geology) to protrude
  5. (intransitive, Austria, dated, with auf) to be dependent on something or someone
    Synonyms: angewiesen sein, abhängig sein
  6. (intransitive, Austria) to be too much for (someone) (e.g. of food)
  7. (intransitive, regional or dated) to touch, to contact, to be situated against something
    Die Kommode steht an der Wand an.The dresser stands against the wall.
  8. (intransitive, regional or dated, also figuratively) to be stuck, to stop moving
    Der Wagen steht an.The car has stopped moving.
    Ich stehe gerade bei diesem Rätsel an, kannst du mir helfen?I'm stuck on this puzzle, can you help me?

Usage notes

Only the auxiliary haben is used in northern and central Germany. In southern Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, sein is common in the vernacular and also, alternatively, in standard usage.

Conjugation

Derived terms

Further reading

  • anstehen” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
  • anstehen” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon
  • anstehen” in Duden online
  • anstehen” in OpenThesaurus.de