German–English dictionary

sich ausdehnen

(intransitive) To take up a larger area or space; to expand, be extended. [from 14th c.]

sich ausdenken

(figurative) To contrive something using skill or ingenuity.

sich auseinandersetzen

(intransitive) To be in debate; to engage in discussion; to dispute; to argue.

sich ausgeben als

(transitive) To pretend to be (a different person); to assume the identity of, especially when there is an intent to deceive.

sich auskennen in

(transitive, philosophy) To maintain (a belief, a position) subject to a given philosophical definition of knowledge; to hold a justified true belief.

sich ausrechnen

(colloquial) To conclude, as by an enumeration and balancing of chances; hence, to think; to suppose; -- followed by an objective clause

sich auswachsen (vr.)

(figurative, intransitive) To emerge haphazardly from a surface.

sich ausweiten

(ambitransitive) To increase (something) in extent or intensity; to intensify or step up.

sich Bahn brechen

(often as forge ahead) To move forward heavily and slowly (originally as a ship); to advance gradually but steadily; to proceed towards a goal in the face of resistance or difficulty.

sich beeilen

(intransitive) To rush or hurry.

sich befassen mit

(transitive) To participate in (an activity, business etc.); to practise, follow (a profession). [from 15th c.]

sich befreien

(reflexive) To bear or conduct oneself; to perform one's part.

sich befriedigen

(intransitive) To stimulate oneself sexually, especially by use of one’s hand or a sex toy made for this purpose, often to the point of ejaculation or orgasm.

sich begründen auf

To be caused or derived; to originate.

sich bekanntmachen

(ambitransitive) To make or become familiar with something or someone.

sich bekennen

(transitive, chiefly, passive) To administer the vows of a religious order to (someone); to admit to a religious order. [from 14th c.]

sich beklagen

(intransitive) To express feelings of pain, dissatisfaction, or resentment.

sich bekreuzigen

(reflexive, to cross oneself) To make the sign of the cross over oneself.

sich beliebt machen

(reflexive) To bring oneself into favour with someone by flattering or trying to please them; to insinuate oneself; to worm one's way in.

sich benehmen

(transitive, reflexive) To behave.

sich berauschen

(transitive) To pelt with stones; especially, to kill by pelting with stones.

sich berühmen

(transitive) To appeal for validation to a (notably cited) authority.

sich beschlagen

(intransitive) To become obscured in condensation or water.

sich beschweren

(intransitive) To express feelings of pain, dissatisfaction, or resentment.

sich betrinken

(transitive) To cause to be drunk; to intoxicate.

sich betten

(intransitive) To go to bed; to put oneself to sleep.

sich bewegen

(intransitive) To perform physical activity for health or training.

sich beweisen

(reflexive) To bear or conduct oneself; to perform one's part.

sich beziehen

(sometimes, proscribed) To mention, to refer to.

sich beziehen auf

(intransitive) To relate to, concern, or be relevant to.

sich biegen

Of a thing (especially a slender structure under compression): to collapse or distort under physical pressure.

sich brüsten

(intransitive) To show off, posture, or smarm.

sich dahinziehen

To proceed heavily, laboriously, or slowly; to advance with weary effort; to go on lingeringly.

sich davonmachen

(intransitive) To disappear suddenly and secretly.

sich davonstehlen

(intransitive) To disappear suddenly and secretly.

sich diebisch freuen

To exhibit a conspicuous (sometimes malevolent) pleasure or sense of self-satisfaction, often at an adversary's misfortune.

sich distanzieren

(transitive) To refuse to own, or to refuse to acknowledge one’s own.

sich distanzieren von

(transitive) To strongly and solemnly refuse to own or acknowledge; to deny responsibility for, approbation of, and the like.

sich drücken

(ambitransitive) To shrink from, or avoid something because of fear.

sich ducken

(transitive) To quickly lower (the head or body), often in order to prevent it from being struck by something.

sich dumm stellen

(intransitive, obsolete) Often followed by at: to pretend to be ignorant of something in order to escape blame; to ignore or overlook a fault deliberately.

sich durchbeißen

To strive, to labour in difficulty, to fight (for or against), to contend.

sich durchsetzen

(transitive) Generally followed by out or through: to carry through in a brazen manner; to act boldly despite embarrassment, risk, etc. [from 1550s.]

sich einbilden

(transitive) To imagine or picture in the mind.

sich einen runterholen

(slang, by extension) To waste time; to engage in an unproductive activity.

sich eingraben

(military, also, figurative, _, in, _, sport) To dig trenches to resist an enemy attack.

sich einigen

(ambitransitive) To bind by mutual agreement.

sich einmachen

(transitive) To make dirty.

sich einschleichen

(figurative, by extension) To ingratiate; to obtain access to or introduce something by subtle, cunning or artful means.

sich einschmeicheln

(idiomatic) To seek to gain favor by flattery or attention.

sich einsetzen für

(intransitive) To be in debate; to engage in discussion; to dispute; to argue.

sich einsetzen gegen

To struggle in opposition; to be in contention or dispute; to contend; to contest.

sich engagieren

(ambitransitive) To pledge or bind; to compromise, expose, or endanger by some decisive act or preliminary step. (Traditionally used only reflexively but now also without oneself etc.)

sich entleeren

(transitive) To cause an object to decrease or become smaller in some parameter, e.g. to shrink

sich entscheiden

(intransitive) To choose; select.

sich entschließen

(intransitive) To make a firm decision to do something. To become determined to reach a certain goal or take a certain action.

sich entschuldigen

(transitive) To allow to leave, or release from any obligation.

sich entwickeln

(intransitive) To prosper or fare well.

sich entziehen

(intransitive) To attempt to escape; to practice artifice or sophistry, for the purpose of eluding.

sich ereignen

(transitive, archaic) To happen to; to befall.

sich ergeben

(intransitive) To give up, or give in.

sich ergötzen

(figurative) To gratify a morbid appetite or craving.

sich erheben

(intransitive) To come up from one's bed or place of repose; to get up.

sich erheben lassen

(figurative) To cause (a dead person) to live again; to resurrect.

sich erhöhen

(of a celestial body) To appear to move upwards from behind the horizon of a planet as a result of the planet's rotation.

sich erholen

(intransitive) To improve, increase, or speed up.

sich erinnern

To recall from one's memory; to have an image in one's memory.

sich etwas zurückholen

(transitive, now, _, rare) To take back possession of (something) [from 15th c.]

sich etwas zuziehen

(transitive) To gain or acquire (an illness).

sich fangen wollen

(intransitive) To make clumsy attempts to move or regain one's balance.

sich fetzen

(intransitive, originally, US) To quarrel or argue pettily briefly.

sich fragen

(transitive, intransitive) To ponder; to feel doubt and curiosity; to query in the mind.

sich freiwillig melden

(intransitive) To enlist oneself as a volunteer.

sich fügen

To yield assent; to accord; to acquiesce, agree, consent; to adapt oneself, to conform.

sich für befangen erklären

(reflexive, law) Of a judge, juror, or prosecutor: to declare (oneself) unable to participate in a court case due to an actual or potential conflict of interest or lack of impartiality.

sich ganz vorne befinden

(transitive) To come at the beginning or front of; to commence.

sich geschlagen geben

(intransitive) To give way on a point or in an argument.

sich gut entwickeln

(intransitive) To thrive or grow well.

sich halten

(transitive) To keep (something) while not in use, generally in a place meant for that purpose.

sich häuten

(transitive) To shed skin or outer layers.

sich heranschleichen

(transitive) To approach slowly and quietly in order not to be discovered when getting closer.

sich hervortun

(intransitive) To be much better than others.

sich hinwegsetzen über

(transitive) To express contempt for (laws, rules, etc.) by word or action.

sich hinziehen

(idiomatic) To last too long.

sich hüten (vor)

(defective, ambitransitive) To use caution, pay attention to (used both with and without of).

sich in den Hintern beißen

(reflexive, informal) To reproach oneself for making a mistake or missing an opportunity.

sich in die Hose machen

(transitive) To make dirty.

sich in Falten legen

(ambitransitive) To fold, crease, crumple, or wad.

sich in Schmähreden ergehen

(intransitive, with against or occasionally about, formerly also with on, at, upon) To complain loudly, to give voice to one's censure or criticism [from 16th c.]

sich in Übereinstimmung befindend

Showing accord in feeling or action.

sich infizieren

(transitive) To gain or acquire (an illness).

sich ins Gedächtnis zurückrufen

(obsolete) To hit upon or reproduce by memory.

sich irren

(intransitive) To wander from the path of duty or rectitude; to err.

sich jmds. Verständnis entziehen

(transitive) To escape being understandable to; to be incomprehensible to.

sich konzentrieren

(ergative) To bring to, or direct toward, a common center; to unite more closely; to gather into one body, mass, or force.

sich krallen

(slang) To catch.

sich lösen

(intransitive, figuratively, especially of an iceberg) To break off.

sich mästen

(transitive) To cause (a person or animal) to be fat or fatter.

sich mit einem Problem befassen

(transitive) To deal with.

sich mit etwas auseinandersetzen

(transitive) To deal with.

sich nähern

(transitive) To near or come close to something.

sich necken

(intransitive) To engage in banter or playful conversation.

sich neigend

Tilted to one side.

sich nicht konzentrieren

(intransitive, slang) To enter a daydream state temporarily, for instance as a result of boredom, fatigue, or intoxication; to doze off.

sich offenbaren

(intransitive) To remove a veil; to reveal oneself.

sich öffnen

(obsolete) To disclose; to reveal; to interpret; to explain.

sich paaren

(intransitive) To copulate.

sich profilieren

(intransitive) To behave dramatically or showily to impress an audience or observers; to pander to a crowd.

sich quälen

(intransitive) To suffer pain.

sich qualifizieren

(transitive) To pass a course or test; to gain credit for a class; to qualify academically.

sich rächen

(figuratively) To avenge, to exact revenge.

sich richten an

(transitive, archaic, poetic) To speak to; address.

sich schämen

To feel ashamed. (This entry is a translation hub.)

sich scharen

(transitive, obsolete) To flock to; to crowd.

sich scheiden lassen

(transitive) To end one's own marriage to (a person) in this way.

sich schleppen

(intransitive) To walk in a messy or unattractively casual way; to trail through dirt.

sich schmecken lassen

(transitive) To taste or eat with pleasure, to like the flavor of [from 16th c.]

sich schnappen

(slang, transitive) To obtain or pick up, especially in a quick or surreptitious way.

sich schnell bücken

(transitive) To quickly lower (the head or body), often in order to prevent it from being struck by something.

sich schwer tun

To strive, to labour in difficulty, to fight (for or against), to contend.

sich sehnen

(transitive) To miss (someone).

sich selbst

(reflexive pronoun) Your own self (singular).

sich selbst helfen

To help (oneself) without the aid of others.

sich selbstsüchtig aneignen

(transitive, informal) To greedily take more than one's share, to take precedence at the expense of another or others.

sich setzen auf (vt.)

(transitive) To place oneself on (a horse, a bicycle, etc.); to bestride.

sich sorgen

(intransitive, informal) To worry.

sich Sorgen machen

Indicates to the interlocutor not to worry (feel anxiety) about something.

sich spiegeln

(intransitive) To be bent back (light, etc.) from a surface.

sich stoßen (vr.)

(transitive) To jam, hit, or bump, especially a toe.

sich strecken

(intransitive) To lengthen when pulled.

sich theatralisch geben

(intransitive) To behave dramatically or showily to impress an audience or observers; to pander to a crowd.

sich treffen

(intransitive) To come together; to meet.

sich trennen

(intransitive) To divide itself into separate pieces or substances.

sich über beide Seiten erstrecken

(transitive) To be on both sides of something; to have parts that are in different places, regions, etc.

sich überanstrengen

To exert (oneself) to an excessive degree.

sich übergeben

(transitive, intransitive, medicine) To evacuate (the bowels or the stomach); to defecate or vomit.

sich unangemessen verhalten hinsichtlich

(ambitransitive, figuratively) To do something beyond an appropriate limit, or beyond one's ability; to overextend.

sich uneinig sein

(intransitive, people, groups, etc.) To have diverging opinions, disagree.

sich unsichtbar machen

(intransitive) To put oneself in a place where one will be out of sight or harder to find.

sich unsichtbar machen (coll.)

(transitive, dated) To hide, especially in a mean or cowardly manner.

sich verabschieden von

(transitive) To dispel; to rid one’s mind of.

sich verbreiten

(intransitive) To proliferate; to become more widely present, to be disseminated. [from 13th c.]

sich verdingen

(intransitive) To accept employment.

sich verdrücken

(transitive, dated) To hide, especially in a mean or cowardly manner.

sich vereinen

(archaic, transitive) To add or unite (e.g. a person), to an association.

sich vereinfachen

(transitive) To make simpler, either by reducing in complexity, reducing to component parts, or making easier to understand.

sich vereinigen

(archaic, transitive) To add or unite (e.g. a person), to an association.

sich verengen

(ambitransitive) To diminish gradually.

sich verfangen

(transitive, nautical) To entangle.

sich verfärben

(transitive) To affect with jaundice; to color by prejudice or envy; to prejudice. [from 1791]