Definition
Material that is discarded because it is no longer wanted or needed.
Translations
- English
- waste
- Français
- déchet
- Türkçe
- atık
- Polski
- odpad
- Русский
- отходы
- Українська
- відходи
GERMAN DICTIONARY
der Abfall
- B1
- Noun
- Nature & Environment
- Home & Household
waste
/deːɐ̯ ˈapfal/
Meaning and translations
Meaning, definition and translations of this sense.
Grammar & classification
Main grammatical and classification properties of the word.
- Article
- der
- Gender
- Masculine
- Plural
- Abfälle
- Part of speech
- Noun
- CEFR level
- B1
- Morphology
- Conversion
- Topics
- Nature & EnvironmentPrimaryHome & Household
Usage examples
Examples showing real usage and grammatical forms.
- Der Abfall muss richtig getrennt werden.NominativSing.The waste must be properly separated.
- Die Stadt entsorgt den Abfall umweltgerecht.AkkusativSing.The city disposes of the waste in an environmentally friendly manner.
- Die Gemeinde widmet sich der Vermeidung von Abfall.DativSing.The municipality is dedicated to preventing waste.
- Die Menge des Abfalls nimmt jedes Jahr zu.GenitivSing.The amount of waste increases every year.
- Abfälle belasten die Umwelt.NominativPlur.Waste puts a strain on the environment.
- Die Arbeiter sammeln die Abfälle ein.AkkusativPlur.The workers collect the waste.
- Die Bürger geben den Abfällen eine neue Verwendung.DativPlur.The citizens give the waste a new use.
- Die Folgen der Abfälle sind deutlich sichtbar.GenitivPlur.The consequences of waste are clearly visible.
Pronunciation and forms
Pronunciation and audio for the lemma and important forms.
-
Lemma
Abfall/ˈapfal/
-
Article phrase
der Abfall/deːɐ̯ ˈapfal/
-
Plural
Abfälle/ˈapfɛlə/
Declension / Forms
How the noun changes across German cases and singular or plural.
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominativ | der Abfall | die Abfälle |
| Akkusativ | den Abfall | die Abfälle |
| Dativ | dem Abfall | den Abfällen |
| Genitiv | des Abfalls | der Abfälle |
Usage and collocations
Typical constructions, prepositions and word combinations.
- CollocationAbfall trennen
- CollocationAbfall vermeiden
- Collocationgroße Mengen Abfall
- Prepositional constructionim Abfallin + Dativ
- CollocationAbfall in den Container werfen
Semantic relations
How this meaning relates to other meanings and easily confused words.
- Near-synonymMüll — rubbish
Müll is more common in everyday language; Abfall often sounds more technical and is used especially in administrative, waste-disposal, and environmental contexts.
- Near-synonymUnrat
Unrat primarily refers to dirt lying around or accumulated, while Abfall sounds distinctly elevated or dated; they are therefore not always interchangeable.
- Narrower termHausmüll
Hausmüll is a specific type of Abfall that is generated in a private household; commercial or industrial Abfall is not included.
Word formation and word family
How the word is formed and its reviewed lexical family.
Formation typeConversion
- abfallenOther
„Abfall“ is a nominalization of the verb „abfallen“.
Word family
- Abfallwirtschaft
- Abfallentsorgung