German

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Etymology

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16th century, equivalent to be- +‎ ja (yes) +‎ -en (with -h- as orthographic hiatus breaker). While the verb may have been derived directly from the interjection ja, an alternative possibility is that it is a reinterpretation of Middle High German bejëhen (to acknowledge, admit), from jëhen (to say). The according spelling bejähen is indeed attested in the 17th century.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /bəˈjaːən/
  • Audio:(file)
  • Hyphenation: be‧ja‧hen

Verb

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bejahen (weak, third-person singular present bejaht, past tense bejahte, past participle bejaht, auxiliary haben)

  1. to affirm, approve, answer something in the affirmative
    Antonym: verneinen

Conjugation

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Derived terms

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Further reading

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  • bejahen” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
  • bejahen” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon
  • bejahen” in Duden online
  • bejahen” in OpenThesaurus.de