"Das Werkzeug"
Translation:The tool
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I've found it useful to remember that "zeug" means "thing".
That way I could remember words like "spielzeug" (spielen = to play, zeug = thing, thing to play = toy)
If "werkzeug" means "tool", I'm pretty sure "werk" means "work" or its related to it.
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Generally speaking, "Arbeit" is more about your job and "Werk" is more about your works/stuff you do in general.
Think of it like this spiel=play zeug=thing so it literally translates to plaything the same with werkzeug that translates to work-thing
Is the prononciation here with "a" instead of "e"? I hear something like "Warkzeug" instead of "Werkzeug".
Go to www.forvo.com and enjoy the native speakers' pronounciations for almost every word in every language
I listened to it like a million times before answering and it really sounded NOT like Werkzeug.
Me too. If you run that word through google.translate it sounds quite different.
I really don't count on DL pronunciation,so that I use "Digitale Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache" (DWDS) instead. It's a bit advanced but has clear and human-like pronunciation. http://www.dwds.de/?view=1=Werkzeug
If werkzeug were plural, would the article in front of it (das) change at all to signify the nouns plurality? Or would both numbers of das werkzeug be the same?
Plurals use the definite article die. Also, the noun changes in the plural form:
"the tool" = das Werkzeug
"the tools" = die Werkzeuge
For the singular and plural forms in all the different cases, you can check Canoo.net.
The exception to this is when nouns are used 'without plural' or 'uncountably'. Like how "equipment" in English can refer to one object or several without becoming "equipments". Werkzeug can be used this way, so you may not always see the plural form.
It's just overly-specific (and possibly redundant).
Werkzeug is not "work tool" - just "tool".
Spielzeug is not "play toy" - just "toy".
Pfanne is not "cooking pan" - just "pan".
Milch is not "cow milk" - just "milk".
Jacke is not "warm jacket" - just "jacket".
In all these examples, you need to remind yourself what is the translation, or the meaning, and what is just extra information (no matter how common it is for that extra information to be linked to it).
Strictly speaking, the plural is die Werkzeuge. Canoo.net is a good online dictionary for this sort of thing.
But Duden also mentions that it can be used "without plural", as in mehr Werkzeug habe ich leider nicht ("Unfortunately I do not have more tools"). In this way, it functions grammatically like "equipment" does in English: "This hammer and this screwdriver are my tools" (grammatically plural), vs "This hammer and this screwdriver are my equipment" (grammatically singular).
It somehow means the thing you do something with, you light things with Feuerzeug, you play with Spielzeug...
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I remember hearing somewhere that German compound words will take on the gender of the last word. Does that mean all words that end in "-zeug" will be neuter?
An important thing, almost everything with "-zeug" use "Das" as Das Spielzeug or das Fahrzeug.
So germans also walk around saying things like "pass me that work thingy! Next to that flying doohickey!"
What is the difference between das Werkzeug and das Gerat? (this question was already asked 5 months ago, but there isn't a response)
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Werkzeug is more commonly translated as "tool" and Gerät as "device" or "apparatus". I gather that a Gerät is generally more complicated than a Werkzeug.
Find a dictionary that you like (paper or online) - it'll be a good companion while you use Duolingo.
It means "stuff" or "thing".
So if it is tool, or tools plural, the article remains the same, das? I thought that changed with plural?
Some words are used "without plural". An example in English is "equipment". One screwdriver is "equipment", a whole box of tools is also "equipment". While there might technically be a plural term "equipments", it is not generally used.
So, das Werkzeug could mean one screwdriver, or a whole box of stuff (spanners, hammers, chisels, etc.).
If you do use the plural form Werkzeuge with a definite article (which you can do to emphasise "the [different kinds of] tools"), then yes, you would need die.
[Source: Duden German dictionary]
I thought we were learning to words for ''stuff''? Would this not be ''The work stuff?''
No. The title of the lesson is "stuff" because the word Zeug alone means "stuff". But when you combine it, it has other meanings. You need to use the correct English word when you translate, not just what it looks like when you break the word apart. If that helps you remember, though, you can use it as a mental tip. But it is not a valid answer in English.
So how would you say "Work Tool" (as opposed to a hobby based tool)? Werkwerkzeug?
I love how German works sometimes. How a strictly literal translation of this is "the work-thing"
I find this particular voice very difficult to follow. Not so bad with this unit, where I'm fairly confident of meanings, but in other units she causes me real problems!