backen
German edit
Etymology edit
From Middle High German backen, from Old High German backan, an originally weak verb and geminated variant of an older strong verb: Middle High German bachen, from Old High German bahhan, from Proto-West Germanic *bakan.
The two verbs early on were blended to some degree, each developing both weak and strong forms. Bachen was originally the predominant form in Upper German. Backen prevailed in the modern standard language because it was common in Central German and also in line with Middle Low German backen (where *baken is not attested). Cognate with German Low German backen, Dutch bakken, English bake, Danish bage, Swedish baka, and also Ancient Greek φώγω (phṓgō).
Pronunciation edit
Verb edit
backen (weak or class 6 strong, third-person singular present backt or bäckt, past tense backte or buk, past participle gebacken or gebackt, past subjunctive backte or büke, auxiliary haben)
- (transitive or intransitive) to bake; to roast
- Der Bäcker backt jeden Morgen 30 Laib Brot.
- The baker bakes 30 loaves of bread every morning.
- Ist der Kuchen schon gebacken?
- Is the cake baked yet?
- (transitive or intransitive, colloquial, regional) to fry
- (transitive or intransitive, chiefly pottery) to fire
- Die Tonfigur muss mindestens zwei Stunden im Ofen backen.
- The clay piece must be fired in the oven for at least two hours.
- (intransitive) to stick together; to cake.
- Der Schnee backte gestern besser.
- The snow caked better yesterday.
- Der Schnee backt an meinen Schuhen.
- My shoes are caked with snow.
- (transitive) to stick (something to something else).
Usage notes edit
The verb backen has weak forms (present: du backst, er backt; past: backte; past participle: gebackt) alongside strong forms (du bäckst, er bäckt; buk; gebacken). The contemporary usage is as follows:
- For the past participle, strong gebacken is the normal form.
- Otherwise both weak and strong forms are possible, with probably a certain prominence of the former. For the past tense in particular, the choice is left to personal preference, since neither backte nor buk are commonly heard in vernacular German, which, in several large areas, almost exclusively uses the perfect tense for this verb (and many others).
- Only weak forms are generally used in the sense of “to stick”, except for the past participle, which may be gebacken or gebackt.
Conjugation edit
| infinitive | backen | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| present participle | backend | ||||
| past participle | gebacken gebackt | ||||
| auxiliary | haben | ||||
| indicative | subjunctive | ||||
| singular | plural | singular | plural | ||
| present | ich backe | wir backen | i | ich backe | wir backen |
| du backst du bäckst |
ihr backt | du backest | ihr backet | ||
| er backt er bäckt |
sie backen | er backe | sie backen | ||
| preterite | ich backte ich buk |
wir backten wir buken |
ii | ich backte1 ich büke1 |
wir backten1 wir büken1 |
| du backtest du bukst |
ihr backtet ihr bukt |
du backtest1 du bükest1 du bükst1 |
ihr backtet1 ihr büket1 ihr bükt1 | ||
| er backte er buk |
sie backten sie buken |
er backte1 er büke1 |
sie backten1 sie büken1 | ||
| imperative | back (du) backe (du) |
backt (ihr) | |||
1Rare except in very formal contexts; alternative in würde normally preferred.
Synonyms edit
Derived terms edit
Related terms edit
Further reading edit
- “backen” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
- “backen” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon
- “herstellen, garen” in Duden online
- “backen, Seemannssprache” in Duden online
- “backen” in OpenThesaurus.de
Middle Dutch edit
Etymology edit
From Old Dutch *bakkan, *bakan, from Proto-West Germanic *bakan.
Verb edit
backen
Inflection edit
This verb needs an inflection-table template.
| Weak | ||
|---|---|---|
| Infinitive | backen | |
| 3rd sg. past | — | |
| 3rd pl. past | — | |
| Past participle | — | |
| Infinitive | backen | |
| In genitive | backens | |
| In dative | backene | |
| Indicative | Present | Past |
| 1st singular | backe | — |
| 2nd singular | bacs, backes | — |
| 3rd singular | bact, backet | — |
| 1st plural | backen | — |
| 2nd plural | bact, backet | — |
| 3rd plural | backen | — |
| Subjunctive | Present | Past |
| 1st singular | backe | — |
| 2nd singular | bacs, backes | — |
| 3rd singular | backe | — |
| 1st plural | backen | — |
| 2nd plural | bact, backet | — |
| 3rd plural | backen | — |
| Imperative | Present | |
| Singular | bac, backe | |
| Plural | bact, backet | |
| Present | Past | |
| Participle | backende | — |
Alternative forms edit
Derived terms edit
Descendants edit
Further reading edit
- “backen (II)”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
- Verwijs, E., Verdam, J. (1885–1929) “backen (I)”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN, page I
Swedish edit
Noun edit
backen