Modern German Grammar: A Practical Guide, Second Edition

(Rick Simeone) #1
In geometry, measurements are given as:

A sei 4cm, B sei 7cm.
A is/Let A be 4cm and B 7cm.

(cm is pronounced Zentimeter.)

 See 39.5 (p. 97) and 39.4b (p. 97) on the subjunctive.


Sizes are often compared to those of common fruits and the like, e.g. erbsengroß/
haselnussgroß ‘pea-/hazelnut size’.

Die Hagelkörner waren fast erbsengroß.
The hailstones were almost as big as peas.

(c) Dimension

‘dimension’ is rendered as -s Ausmaß(e)/-e Dimension(en).

Area (-e Fläche) is measured in Quadratzentimeter (= cm^2 )/Quadratmeter (= m^2 )/
Quadratkilometer (= km^2 ) ‘square centimetre/metre/kilometre’.

Meine Wohnung hat 60 Quadratmeter/ist 60 Quadratmeter groß.
My flat is 60 square metres (in area).

In order to describe, for example, an indoor pool, say:

Das Schwimmbecken hat olympische Maße/Ausmaße: Es ist 50m
lang und 10m breit./Es ist 50 mal 10m groß. (m = Meter)
The pool is Olympic size: it is 50m long and 10m wide. It is 50 metres by
10.

To cover an area, sich erstrecken/aus*dehnen über ‘to stretch/extend’ is used.

 See also 80.4d (p. 282) for covering an area.


Das Industriegelände erstreckt sich über 25 Hektar.
The industrial site extends over 25 hectares.

Volume is measured in -r Kubikzentimeter (= cm^3 )/-r Kubikmeter (= m^3 ), etc., ‘cubic
centimetre/cubic metre’, etc.

To describe a three-dimensional object, use lang/breit/hoch ‘long/wide/high’:

Der Tisch ist 1,40m lang, 70cm breit und 74cm hoch.
The table is 1.40m long, 70cm wide and 74cm high.

To describe the depth of something (e.g. cupboards, wardrobes, drawers, etc.), use tief:

Die Schublade ist 50cm breit, 10cm hoch und 60cm tief.
The drawer is 50cm wide, 10cm high and 60cm deep.

Corresponding nouns (see 53.1b and 54.3 for word formation) are -e Länge/-e Breite/
-e Höhe/-e Tiefe ‘length/breadth/height/depth’.

Der Münchner Fernsehturm hat eine Höhe von 290 Metern.
The television tower in Munich has a height of 290m.

 See 47.1a (p. 123) for adjectives derived from place names.


75
GIVING/SEEKING INFORMATION
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