to palpate / pat down / scan
abtasten – tastete ab – hat abgetastet
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to palpate
To systematically touch something or someone with the hands in order to determine its shape, texture, or any abnormalities.
Die Ärztin tastete den Bauch des Patienten vorsichtig ab.
The doctor carefully palpated the patient's abdomen.
to pat someone down
To search a person with the hands, especially during a security check, in order to find concealed objects.
Der Sicherheitsbeamte tastete den Besucher vor dem Eingang ab.
The security guard patted down the visitor before they entered.
to scan
To capture a surface, image, or signal technically, point by point or line by line, and convert it into electronic data.
Der Scanner tastet das Dokument ab und speichert es als Datei.
The scanner scans the document and saves it as a file.
to sound someone out
To cautiously find out how someone feels about something or how they will react to something.
Die Verhandlungsführerin tastete ihren Gesprächspartner zunächst ab.
The negotiator initially sounded out her counterpart.
| ich | taste ab |
|---|---|
| du | tastest ab |
| er/sie/es | tastet ab |
| wir | tasten ab |
| ihr | tastet ab |
| sie | tasten ab |
| ich | tastete ab |
|---|---|
| du | tastetest ab |
| er/sie/es | tastete ab |
| wir | tasteten ab |
| ihr | tastetet ab |
| sie | tasteten ab |
| ich | habe abgetastet |
|---|---|
| du | hast abgetastet |
| er/sie/es | hat abgetastet |
| wir | haben abgetastet |
| ihr | habt abgetastet |
| sie | haben abgetastet |
| du | tast ab! taste ab! |
|---|---|
| ihr | tastet ab! |
| Sie | tasten Sie ab! |
| ich | hatte abgetastet |
|---|---|
| du | hattest abgetastet |
| er/sie/es | hatte abgetastet |
| wir | hatten abgetastet |
| ihr | hattet abgetastet |
| sie | hatten abgetastet |
| ich | werde abtasten |
|---|---|
| du | wirst abtasten |
| er/sie/es | wird abtasten |
| wir | werden abtasten |
| ihr | werdet abtasten |
| sie | werden abtasten |
| ich | taste ab |
|---|---|
| du | tastest ab |
| er/sie/es | taste ab |
| wir | tasten ab |
| ihr | tastet ab |
| sie | tasten ab |
Used for reported speech.
| ich | tastete ab |
|---|---|
| du | tastetest ab |
| er/sie/es | tastete ab |
| wir | tasteten ab |
| ihr | tastetet ab |
| sie | tasteten ab |
Used for wishes and “would”.
| infinitive | abtasten |
|---|---|
| with zu | abzutasten |
| present participle | abtastend |
| past participle | abgetastet |
'Abtasten' (to palpate / pat down / scan) is a separable verb. In a main clause, 'ab' appears at the end of the sentence; in a subordinate clause, the verb remains together; and in the infinitive with 'zu', 'zu' goes between 'ab' and 'tasten'.
Der Polizist tastet den Verdächtigen gründlich ab.
The police officer pats down the suspect thoroughly.
Der Arzt erklärt, warum er den Bauch abtastet.
The doctor explains why he is palpating the abdomen.
Die Ärztin rät ihr, die Brust regelmäßig selbst abzutasten.
The doctor advises her to palpate her breasts regularly herself.
The meaning can often be recognized from the situation and the object: body parts usually indicate an examination, a person during a security check indicates a search for objects, documents or signals indicate technical scanning, and a person in a conversation indicates a cautious assessment.
Die Ärztin tastete den Hals des Patienten ab.
The doctor palpated the patient's neck.
Am Flughafen wurde ich von einer Beamtin abgetastet.
At the airport, I was patted down by a female security officer.
Das Gerät tastet das Signal Zeile für Zeile ab.
The device scans the signal line by line.
In its medical meaning, 'abtasten' (to palpate) is often used with body parts or objects of examination. Typical collocations include 'den Bauch abtasten' (to palpate the abdomen), 'die Lymphknoten abtasten' (to palpate the lymph nodes), and 'eine Schwellung abtasten' (to palpate a swelling).
Die Ärztin tastete die Lymphknoten am Hals vorsichtig ab.
The doctor carefully palpated the lymph nodes in the neck.
During a security check, the person being checked is named as the accusative object. The sentence often also specifies the place or reason for the check.
Vor dem Konzert tastete das Personal alle Besucher ab.
Before the concert, the staff patted down all the visitors.
In conversations, 'jemanden abtasten' (to sound someone out) is often used with adverbs such as 'vorsichtig' (cautiously), 'behutsam' (carefully), or 'zunächst' (initially). It refers to a gradual assessment, often without directly asking about someone's opinion or intentions.
In der ersten Verhandlungsrunde tasteten sich beide Seiten vorsichtig ab.
In the first round of negotiations, both sides cautiously sounded each other out.
