to fade away / wind down
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to wind down
To gradually come to an end in a calm and pleasant way. Often used in the expression 'etwas ausklingen lassen' (to let something wind down / to end something pleasantly).
Wir haben den Abend gemütlich bei einem Glas Wein ausklingen lassen.
We wound down the evening cozily with a glass of wine.
to fade away
Describes a tone or sound that slowly becomes quieter and finally stops completely.
Die Glocken des Kirchturms klangen noch lange in der Stille der Nacht aus.
The bells of the church tower kept fading away for a long time in the stillness of the night.
'Ausklingen' (to fade away / wind down) is a separable verb. The prefix 'aus-' goes at the end of the main clause. In subordinate clauses and in the infinitive, the verb stays together.
Der Applaus klang nur langsam aus.
The applause faded away only slowly.
The verb forms the perfect tense with 'sein' when it describes something ending by itself (e.g., a tone). In the fixed expression 'etwas ausklingen lassen' (to let something wind down / to end something pleasantly), however, the perfect tense is formed with 'haben'.
Der letzte Ton der Symphonie ist gerade ausgeklungen.
The last note of the symphony has just faded away.
The expression 'etwas ausklingen lassen' (to let something wind down / to end something pleasantly) is especially common. It means to deliberately end an activity or a day in a calm and pleasant way. The 'etwas' is usually an accusative object such as 'den Abend' (the evening), 'den Tag' (the day), or 'das Fest' (the celebration).
Lass uns den Abend mit einem Film auf dem Sofa ausklingen lassen.
Let's wind down the evening with a film on the sofa.
This meaning almost always refers to tones, music, or sounds that gradually fade away. Typical subjects are 'die Musik' (the music), 'die Glocken' (the bells), 'der Applaus' (the applause), or 'das Lachen' (the laughter).
Nach dem Konzert klang der Beifall noch minutenlang aus.
After the concert, the applause kept fading away for several minutes.
