German

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Etymology 1

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From Middle High German underschrīben, originally with separable prefix. Synchonically analyzable as unter- (under) +‎ schreiben (write). Calque of Latin subscrībere.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˌʊntəʁˈʃʁaɪ̯bən/, [ˌʔʊn.tɐˈʃʁaɪ̯.bən], [-ˈʃʁaɪ̯.bm̩]
  • Audio (Germany):(file)
  • Hyphenation: un‧ter‧schrei‧ben
  • Rhymes: -aɪ̯bən

Verb

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unterschreiben (class 1 strong, third-person singular present unterschreibt, past tense unterschrieb, past participle unterschrieben, auxiliary haben)

  1. (transitive or intransitive) to sign (write one’s signature)
    Synonyms: signieren, unterzeichnen
    Unterschreiben Sie bitte auf der punktierten Linie.
    Please sign on the dotted line.
Conjugation
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Etymology 2

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unter +‎ schreiben

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈʊntəʁˌʃʁaɪ̯bən/, [ˈʔʊn.tɐˌʃʁaɪ̯.bən], [-ˌʃʁaɪ̯.bm̩]
  • Hyphenation: un‧ter‧schrei‧ben

Verb

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unterschreiben (class 1 strong, third-person singular present schreibt unter, past tense schrieb unter, past participle untergeschrieben, auxiliary sein)

  1. (obsolete) to sign
  2. (rather rare) to write under or below something
    Um das Iota der langen Diphthonge in einer griechischen Handschrift hinzuzufügen, war man gezwungen, es unterzuschreiben.
    In order to add the iota of the long diphthongs in a Greek manuscript, one was constrained to write it below [the line].
Usage notes
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  • The form in which sense 2 most commonly occurs is the past participle, untergeschrieben.
Conjugation
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Derived terms
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See also
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Further reading

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