accumulation / gathering
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accumulation / gathering
A group or quantity of people, objects, or data that have gathered in one place or are concentrated there.
Eine große Ansammlung von Menschen wartete vor dem Konzerthaus auf Einlass.
A large gathering of people was waiting outside the concert hall to be admitted.
“Ansammlung” (accumulation/gathering) is a noun derived from the separable verb “sich ansammeln” (to accumulate; to gather). The ending “-ung” turns the action of collecting into a thing, namely the collected quantity.
Im Laufe der Jahre hat sich bei ihm eine Menge Staub angesammelt.
Over the years, a lot of dust has accumulated at his place.
To describe what the accumulation or gathering consists of, the preposition “von” (of) followed by the dative is almost always used.
Vor dem Museum bildete sich eine lange Ansammlung von Touristen.
A long gathering of tourists formed in front of the museum.
The word “Ansammlung” (accumulation/gathering) is often neutral and descriptive. It can be used for groups of people, but also for a quantity of objects, vehicles, or even liquids and data.
Auf der Festplatte gab es eine riesige Ansammlung von ungenutzten Dateien.
There was a huge accumulation of unused files on the hard drive.
collection
A Sammlung (collection) is usually assembled deliberately or out of personal interest. Ansammlung (accumulation or gathering), by contrast, primarily refers to a quantity concentrated in one place, without necessarily having been deliberately selected or organized. Sammlung is therefore more suitable for a deliberately assembled body of objects.
Nach der Exkursion liegt auf dem Tisch eine ungeordnete Ansammlung von Gesteinsproben.
After the field trip, an unordered accumulation of rock samples is lying on the table.
Auf dem Tisch liegt eine sorgfältig geordnete Sammlung von Gesteinsproben.
A carefully organized collection of rock samples is lying on the table.
