thinker
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thinker
A person who deals intensively with philosophical, scientific, or social questions and is known for their profound thoughts.
Immanuel Kant war einer der bedeutendsten Denker der Aufklärung.
Immanuel Kant was one of the most important thinkers of the Enlightenment.
The word 'Denker' (thinker) is derived directly from the verb 'denken' (to think). The ending '-er' is often used in German to refer to a male person who performs a particular activity.
Er ist bekannt als ein kritischer Denker seiner Zeit.
He is known as a critical thinker of his time.
When a person is described as an important intellectual, 'Denker' (thinker) is often combined with adjectives such as 'großer' (great), 'bedeutender' (important), 'politischer' (political), or 'freier' (free).
Aristoteles war einer der größten Denker der Antike.
Aristotle was one of the greatest thinkers of antiquity.
This meaning can often be recognized by the fact that the body posture is described. A typical expression is the 'Denkerpose' (thinker's pose), which recalls Rodin's famous sculpture.
Er saß in der typischen Denkerpose am Schreibtisch und starrte aus dem Fenster.
He sat at the desk in the typical thinker's pose and stared out the window.
philosopher
'Philosoph' and 'Denker' both describe people who think a lot and deeply about important questions. 'Philosoph' fits especially when it is about philosophy as a field or about big questions of life. 'Denker' is a bit more general: a thinker can also think about science, society, or a problem. In addition, 'Denker' can describe a person in a specific moment when they seem very thoughtful. Learners may confuse the words because many philosophers are also thinkers. But not every thinker is automatically a philosopher.
Mein Kollege saß lange still am Fenster und sah aus wie ein echter Denker.
My colleague sat quietly by the window for a long time and looked like a real thinker.
Im Kurs haben wir über einen griechischen Philosophen gesprochen.
In the course, we talked about a Greek philosopher.