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erinnern. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
erinnern, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
erinnern in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
erinnern you have here. The definition of the word
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German
Etymology
From Middle High German er- + innern from Old High German innarōn (“make someone perceive inwardly”), from innar (“inner”), see the preposition in (“in”).
Pronunciation
Verb
erinnern (weak, third-person singular present erinnert, past tense erinnerte, past participle erinnert, auxiliary haben)
- (transitive, often with an (of) + accusative) to remind
- (reflexive, often with an + accusative ) to remember, to be reminded of
- (transitive, colloquial, rare) to remember, to commemorate
- (transitive, formal, with gegen + accusative) to admonish, to interject, to inveigh
2023, Hans H. Klein, edited by Günter Dürig, Roman Herzog, and Rupert Scholz, Grundgesetz-Kommentar, 101. Ergänzungslieferung edition, München: C. H. Beck, Art. 21 Rn. 377:Der nicht unbeträchtliche theoretische Aufwand, der zur Begründung einer Einschränkung der Aufnahmefreiheit getrieben wird, stößt überdies schon deshalb ins Leere, weil die Parteien in aller Regel an der Gewinnung neuer Mitglieder höchlichst interessiert sein werden. Sollte aber eine Partei einen gegenteiligen Kurs verfolgen („klein aber fein“), so ist dagegen aus verfassungsrechtlicher Sicht nur dann etwas zu erinnern, wenn darin ein Indiz für eine gegen die freiheitliche demokratische Grundordnung gerichtete Ausrichtung gesehen werden kann.- (please add an English translation of this quotation)
Usage notes
- That which is remembered was predominantly indicated by a genitive object in older usage (until ca. 1940-1950 in writing); nowadays this is restricted to elevated style. It had also been possible to express that which is reminded with a genitive object, but this usage has been archaic for one or two centuries:
Er erinnerte mich dieses Tages.- He reminded me of that day.
Ich erinnere mich dieses Tages.- I remember that day.
- Today both senses are generally indicated with an + accusative:
- Er erinnerte mich an diesen Tag.
- Ich erinnere mich an diesen Tag.
- Occasionally, in colloquial usage the reflexive verb is replaced with a simple verb + accusative object. Sometimes associated with Northern German, this usage is much less common and considered nonstandard:
Ich erinnere diesen Tag.- I remember that day.
- But if a passive is desired such use is inevitable, though passive constructions are avoided altogether:
2001, Winfried Georg Sebald, Austerlitz, Frankfurt am Main: S. Fischer Verlag, →ISBN, page 173:Jedenfalls war eines Tages dann unter der Post diese Ansichtskarte aus den zwanziger oder dreißiger Jahren, die eine weiße Zeltkolonie zeigte in der ägyptischen Wüste, ein Bild aus einer von niemandem mehr erinnerten Kampagne, […]- (please add an English translation of this quotation)
Conjugation
Conjugation of
erinnern (
weak, auxiliary
haben)
1Rare except in very formal contexts; alternative in würde normally preferred.
Composed forms of
erinnern (
weak, auxiliary
haben)
Related terms
References
- ^ “Die korrekte Verwendung des Verbs „erinnern (an)“”, in Duden, (Can we date this quote?), archived from the original on 16 September 2022
Further reading