grundsätzlich
German edit
Etymology edit
Pronunciation edit
Adjective edit
grundsätzlich (strong nominative masculine singular grundsätzlicher, comparative grundsätzlicher, superlative am grundsätzlichsten)
- based on principle
- fundamental, elementary, principial
Declension edit
Positive forms of grundsätzlich
Comparative forms of grundsätzlich
Superlative forms of grundsätzlich
Derived terms edit
Adverb edit
grundsätzlich
- in principle, as a rule (but with exceptions)
- absolutely, categorically (without exception)
Usage notes edit
- The word is ambiguous, though the sense “in principle” is commoner. To some degree the distinction is one of intonation. For example, the phrase Das tue ich grundsätzlich nicht would be understood as “In principle, I don’t do that” when the words grundsätzlich and nicht are equally stressed, but as “I absolutely never do that” when there is strong stress on grundsätzlich.
Further reading edit
- “grundsätzlich” in Duden online
- “grundsätzlich” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache