aalen

See also Aalen

German

Etymology

The sense of to hunt eels derives from Aal (eel). The colloquial senses derive from the appearance of the eel and its way of moving.

Pronunciation

  • Hyphenation: aa‧len
  • Pronunciation: IPA: [ˈaːlən]
  • Homophone: Ahlen

Verb

aalen (third-person singular simple present aalt, past tense aalte, past participle geaalt, auxiliary haben)

  1. to hunt eels, to go on an eel-hunt
    Bis ans Ende seiner Tage aalt John noch im See hinter seinem Haus.
    John hunted eels in the lake behind his house until the end of his days.
  2. (colloquial, reflexiv) to stretch out, especially laughing (compare rotfl)
    Beim Erzählen der alten Anekdoten aalten wir uns vor Lachen.
    ≈ As we listened to the old anecdotes, we threw our heads back, laughing.
  3. (colloquial) to relax (eg as on vacation)

Conjugation

Hypernyms

  • (hunt): Fischfang, Jagd

Derived terms

  • sich vor Lachen aalen

Related terms

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Last modified on 1 May 2013, at 15:49