unconscious
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unconscious
In a state without consciousness, in which you do not perceive anything and cannot react, often as a result of an injury, illness, or fainting.
Nach dem Sturz vom Fahrrad war er kurzzeitig bewusstlos.
After falling off his bike, he was briefly unconscious.
The word is made up of 'Bewusstsein' (consciousness) and the ending '-los' (-less). The ending '-los' means 'without', so 'bewusstlos' literally means 'without consciousness'.
Er lag bewusstlos auf dem Boden, bis der Arzt kam.
He lay unconscious on the floor until the doctor came.
This adjective is almost always used predicatively, that is, after a verb such as 'sein' (to be), 'werden' (to become), or 'bleiben' (to remain). It describes a person's condition.
Plötzlich wurde ihr schwindelig und sie wurde bewusstlos.
Suddenly she became dizzy and lost consciousness.
Common verbs in this context are 'jemanden bewusstlos schlagen' (to knock someone unconscious) or 'bewusstlos zusammenbrechen' (to collapse unconscious). It often describes the sudden onset of this state.
Der Boxer schlug seinen Gegner in der dritten Runde bewusstlos.
The boxer knocked his opponent unconscious in the third round.
pointless / senseless
Sinnlos and bewusstlos can both describe a state of unconsciousness. In present-day German, bewusstlos is the usual word for this meaning; sinnlos is outdated in this sense and is more likely to appear in older texts.
Im heutigen Bericht liegt der Verletzte bewusstlos am Boden.
In today’s report, the injured man lies unconscious on the ground.
In dem alten Roman liegt der Verletzte sinnlos am Boden.
In the old novel, the injured man lies unconscious on the ground.
