German

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Etymology

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From Middle High German snaben (to snap, snort), ultimately imitative of clattering jaws (lautmalend); compare also schnaufen (to snort, pant). Cognate with Dutch snappen, English snap.[1]

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈʃnapən/, [ˈʃnapən], [ˈʃnapm̩]
  • Audio:(file)
  • Audio:(file)

Verb

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schnappen (weak, third-person singular present schnappt, past tense schnappte, past participle geschnappt, auxiliary haben)

  1. to snap (with one’s mouth)
    Synonyms: fassen, beißen
  2. to breathe, gasp
    frische Luft schnappento get a take of fresh air
    er schnappte nach LuftHe was gasping (for air).
  3. to catch; to seize
    Synonyms: fangen, greifen
  4. (colloquial) to nab (a criminal)
    Synonyms: festnehmen, kriegen, verhaften

Conjugation

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Derived terms

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References

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  1. ^ Friedrich Kluge (1883) “schnappen”, in John Francis Davis, transl., Etymological Dictionary of the German Language, published 1891

Further reading

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