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laufen

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

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See also: Laufen and Läufen

German

Etymology

From Middle High German loufen, from Old High German hloufan, loufan, from Proto-West Germanic *hlaupan. Cognate with Dutch lopen, English leap and lope, Danish løbe.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈlaʊ̯fən/, [ˈlaʊ̯fn̩], [ˈlaʊ̯fɱ̩]
  • Audio (Germany):(file)
  • Audio:(file)
  • Hyphenation: lau‧fen

Verb

laufen (class 7 strong, third-person singular present läuft, past tense lief, past participle gelaufen, auxiliary sein)

  1. (transitive or intransitive) to walk; to jog; to run (to move on foot; either at a normal or an increased speed)
    Wir können mit dem Bus fahren oder laufen.
    We could take the bus or walk.
    Lasst uns etwas schneller laufen.
    Let's move a little faster.
    Joggen bedeutet entspannter, aber auch bewusster zu laufen.
    Jogging means to run in a less exhausting but more conscious way.
  2. (intransitive, of a fluid) to flow; to leak; to run
  3. (intransitive, of an event) to be in progress; to run
    Das Projekt läuft erfolgreich.
    The project is progressing successfully.
    einwandfrei laufen.
    to run smoothly.
  4. (intransitive) to happen, to go on, to take place
    Was läuft da zwischen euch?
    What's going on between you guys?
  5. (intransitive, computing) to run, to execute (a program)
    Das Programm läuft einwandfrei. ― The program runs flawlessly.
  6. (intransitive, of an event) to be in order; to work; to function
    Alles läuft, wie es soll. ― Everything works just fine.
    • 2014, Schnitzler Klaus, edited by Klaus Schnitzler, Münchener Anwaltshandbuch Familienrecht, 4th edition, München: C.H. Beck, § 1 Rn. 41, page 12:
      Wenn die Trennung einigermaßen läuft und auch der Umgang zwischen dem die faktische Sorge nicht ausübenden Elternteil und den Kindern klappt, sollte man mit der Einleitung eines Sorgerechtsverfahrens zurückhaltend sein.
      (please add an English translation of this quotation)
  7. (intransitive, of time) to pass; to flow

Usage notes

  • Some dictionaries misleadingly define laufen as specifically meaning a pace between gehen (“walking”) and rennen (“running”). That was the original sense in Middle High German and is still common in Bavaria and Austria, but descriptions or definitions that claim that it has only this meaning are contradicted by long-established usage. In fact, laufen is neutral with regard to pace in modern German as spoken in most of Germany unless the context implies it, as in: Sie waren spät dran und mussten laufen. (“They were late, so they had to run.”)
  • Regardless of pace, moreover, only laufen is commonly used of animals and in such idioms as auf den Händen laufen (“to walk on one's hands”) or laufen lernen (“to learn to walk”).
  • In Austria, however, laufen is not considered neutral with regard to pace, and a strict distinction is made between gehen, which is used exclusively in the sense of “to walk”, and laufen and rennen, both of which are exclusively used in the sense of “to run”.

Conjugation

Conjugation of laufen (class 7 strong, auxiliary sein)
More information infinitive, present participle ...

1This form and alternative in würde both found.

Composed forms of laufen (class 7 strong, auxiliary sein)
More information perfect, singular ...
  • 1st ps. sg. indicative present active also: lauf', lauf

Derived terms

See also

Further reading

  • “laufen” in Duden online
  • “laufen” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
  • “laufen” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon
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