tief
English
German
Etymology
From Lua error in Module:utilities at line 142: attempt to perform arithmetic on local 'h' (a nil value), tiuf, going back to Old High German tiuf, tiof, inherited through Proto-West Germanic *deup and ultimately deriving from Proto-Germanic *deupaz, from Pre-Germanic *dʰewbʰnós, from Proto-Indo-European *dʰewbʰ-.
Compare Low German deep, Dutch diep, English deep, Danish dyb, Norwegian dyp, Icelandic djúpur.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /tiːf/
Audio (file) - Rhymes: -iːf
Adjective
tief (strong nominative masculine singular tiefer, comparative tiefer, superlative am tiefsten)
- (also figuratively) deep
- Wie tief ist das Wasser? ― How deep is the water?
- Sie hat ein tiefes Verständnis der russischen Kultur. ― She has a deep understanding of Russian culture.
- low (situated close to, or below, the ground)
- Du hast das Bild zu tief gehängt. ― You hung the picture too low.
- (figuratively, Switzerland) low (small, not high in amount or quantity, value, etc.)
- Synonym: niedrig
- tiefere Abgaben ― lower taxes
Usage notes
German niedrig is a more generally applicable translation of English low. Tief can cover the meaning of niedrig in many contexts, but not vice versa.
Declension
Lua error in Module:utilities at line 142: attempt to perform arithmetic on local 'h' (a nil value)
Derived terms
Old Frisian
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈti̯ɛːf/
References
- Bremmer, Rolf H. (2009) An Introduction to Old Frisian: History, Grammar, Reader, Glossary, Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company, →ISBN, page 115