to favor / facilitate
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to facilitate
To promote or make easier a development or condition; to create positive conditions for something.
Das warme und feuchte Klima begünstigt das Wachstum exotischer Pflanzen.
The warm and humid climate facilitates the growth of exotic plants.
to favor
To give someone preferential treatment or provide them with an unfair advantage.
Kritiker werfen dem Schiedsrichter vor, die Heimmannschaft begünstigt zu haben.
Critics accuse the referee of having favored the home team.
to aid
In the legal sense: to help an offender avoid punishment after the crime has been committed.
Wer einen flüchtigen Verbrecher versteckt, begünstigt ihn und macht sich strafbar.
Anyone who hides a fugitive criminal aids them and commits a punishable offense.
The verb is derived from the adjective 'günstig' (favorable). The prefix 'be-' turns it into a transitive verb that means to influence something or someone favorably or to create advantageous conditions.
Gute Kontakte können die Jobsuche begünstigen.
Good contacts can facilitate the job search.
'Begünstigen' (to favor / facilitate) is an inseparable verb because it begins with 'be-'. The prefix remains firmly attached to the verb stem in all sentence forms and tenses.
Die Jury hat anscheinend einen Kandidaten klar begünstigt.
The jury apparently clearly favored one candidate.
In the meaning 'fördern' (to promote), 'begünstigen' (to facilitate) is often used with impersonal subjects and abstract objects. Typical combinations are 'das Wetter begünstigt die Ernte' (the weather favors the harvest) or 'die Umstände begünstigen eine schnelle Lösung' (the circumstances facilitate a quick solution).
Die aktuelle Wirtschaftslage begünstigt Investitionen in Immobilien.
The current economic situation favors investments in real estate.
You can recognize this meaning by the fact that a person or institution (e.g., a referee, a teacher) gives another person or group an unfair advantage. The object of the verb here is always a person or group.
Der Lehrer wurde kritisiert, weil er seine Lieblingsschüler begünstigte.
The teacher was criticized because he favored his favorite students.
The meaning of helping an offender is a term from legal language. This meaning is hardly used in everyday speech.
Er wurde angeklagt, weil er den Dieb nach der Tat begünstigt hat.
He was charged because he aided the thief after the crime.
to support
Unterstützen generally refers to practical, material, or financial help, even when the person previously committed a crime. Begünstigen is the legal term for helping someone after the crime in a way that makes it easier for the offender to escape punishment.
Nach seiner Tat begünstigte sie ihren Bruder, indem sie ihn vor der Polizei versteckte.
After his crime, she aided her brother by hiding him from the police.
Nach seiner Haftentlassung unterstützte sie ihren Bruder mit Geld für den Alltag.
After he was released from prison, she supported her brother with money for everyday expenses.
