German

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Etymology

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From Middle High German bewerben, from Old High German bihwerban. Equivalent to be- +‎ werben.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /bəˈvɛrbən/, [bəˈvɛɐ̯.bm̩], [-ˈvɛʁ-], [-ˈʋɛɐ̯-], [-ˈʋɛʁ-], [-bən]
  • Audio:(file)
  • Audio:(file)
  • Hyphenation: be‧wer‧ben

Verb

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bewerben (class 3 strong, third-person singular present bewirbt, past tense bewarb, past participle beworben, past subjunctive bewürbe, auxiliary haben)

  1. (reflexive) to apply (submit oneself as a candidate) [with bei (+ dative) ‘to a company, organization, etc.’, along with um (+ accusative) or für (+ accusative) or (colloquial) auf (+ accusative) ‘for a position’, along with als ‘as a specified role’, along with auf (+ accusative) ‘in response to an advertisement, etc.’]
    Nach ihrem Abschluss an der Universität bewarb sie sich sofort bei einem Autokonzern um/für eine Stelle als Ingenieurin.
    After having received her university degree, she immediately applied to a big car company for a job as an engineer.
  2. (reflexive, formal) to try to win (someone's) favour/favor; to court [with um (+ accusative) ‘someone’]
    Synonym: werben
    Er bewirbt sich um sie.
    He tries to win her favour/favor. / He courts her.
    Er bewirbt sich um die Aufmerksamkeit seines Chefs.
    He tries to win his boss’s attention.
  3. (transitive) to advertise
    Synonym: werben (für)
    Die Produkte werden mit grellen Etiketten beworben.
    The products are advertised with lurid labels.

Conjugation

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Derived terms

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Further reading

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