01
adoptieren
to adopt
To legally accept a child as one's own and take them into one's family.
example
Sie haben beschlossen, ein Kind aus dem Waisenhaus zu adoptieren.
They decided to adopt a child from the orphanage.
adoptieren
to adopt
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Meanings
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Usage tips
Grammar of -ieren verbs
Verbs that end in '-ieren' often come from other languages. They are always regular and form the perfect tense with 'haben' and the past participle ending in '-t', but without the prefix 'ge-'. So it is 'hat adoptiert' (has adopted).
EXAMPLE
Meine Tante hat vor vielen Jahren ein Kind adoptiert.
My aunt adopted a child many years ago.
Context clues
The direct object of the verb makes the meaning clear. You either adopt a living being ('ein Kind' = a child, 'einen Hund' = a dog) or something abstract ('eine Idee' = an idea, 'eine Methode' = a method, 'einen Lebensstil' = a lifestyle).
EXAMPLE
Viele Firmen adoptieren agile Arbeitsmethoden, um flexibler zu sein.
Many companies adopt agile working methods in order to be more flexible.
Typical preposition
When naming the place of origin of an adopted child or animal, the preposition 'aus' (from) is used. Typical formulations are 'ein Kind aus einem anderen Land adoptieren' (to adopt a child from another country) or 'einen Hund aus dem Tierheim adoptieren' (to adopt a dog from the animal shelter).
EXAMPLE
Sie möchten eine Katze aus dem örtlichen Tierheim adoptieren.
They would like to adopt a cat from the local animal shelter.
Compare with
adoptieren vs aufnehmen
to record / take in
'aufnehmen' and 'adoptieren' can both mean that a person or an animal comes into a home or family. 'aufnehmen' is more general: you can let a person stay with you temporarily or take someone into a group. 'adoptieren' is more specific. With a child, it means legally accepting them as your own child; with an animal, it means taking it in permanently. The words can be confused because in both cases someone or something is added. When it is about an official or permanent acceptance as a family member, 'adoptieren' is more precise.
adoptieren
Anna und Paul möchten ein Kind adoptieren.
Anna and Paul would like to adopt a child.
aufnehmen
Meine Tante hat ihren Neffen für ein paar Wochen bei sich aufgenommen.
My aunt took in her nephew for a few weeks.
In real life
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