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befassen. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
befassen, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
befassen in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
befassen you have here. The definition of the word
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German
Etymology
be- + fassen
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /bəˈfasn̩/
- Hyphenation: be‧fas‧sen
Verb
befassen (weak, third-person singular present befasst, past tense befasste, past participle befasst, auxiliary haben)
- (reflexive, with preposition: mit) to attend to, to deal with, to engage oneself in, to delve into
- Synonyms: beschäftigen, auseinandersetzen
- (transitive, officialese) to give someone the task to deal with something
- Synonym: betrauen
- Article 259 II Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union:
Bevor ein Mitgliedstaat wegen einer angeblichen Verletzung der Verpflichtungen aus den Verträgen gegen einen anderen Staat Klage erhebt, muss er die Kommission damit befassen.- Before a Member State brings an action against another Member State for an alleged infringement of an obligation under the Treaties, it shall bring the matter before the Commission.
- (regional or rare, transitive) to touch
- Synonym: anfassen
Conjugation
Conjugation of
befassen (
weak, auxiliary
haben)
1Rare except in very formal contexts; alternative in würde normally preferred.
Composed forms of
befassen (
weak, auxiliary
haben)
Derived terms
Related terms
Further reading
- “befassen” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
- “befassen” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon
- “befassen” in Duden online
- “befassen” in OpenThesaurus.de