dunkel
dark
With little or no light; dark.
EXAMPLE
Mach bitte das Licht an, es ist schon ganz dunkel im Zimmer.
Please turn on the light; it's already quite dark in the room.
dunkel
dark
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Meanings
dunkel
dark
A color that is deep and not light and approaches black, e.g. dark blue, dark green.
EXAMPLE
Er kaufte sich einen dunkelblauen Anzug für die Hochzeit.
He bought himself a dark blue suit for the wedding.
dunkel
dark
Unclear, mysterious, shady, or suspicious. Often refers to a person's past, intentions, or character.
EXAMPLE
Über seine dunkle Vergangenheit wollte er nicht sprechen.
He didn't want to talk about his dark past.
dunkel
deep
Describes a low tone or a deep voice.
EXAMPLE
Der Erzähler sprach mit einer dunklen, angenehmen Stimme.
The narrator spoke with a deep, pleasant voice.
sich dunkel erinnern
to vaguely remember
To have a vague, imprecise, or only hazy memory of something.
EXAMPLE
Ich kann mich nur noch dunkel an meinen ersten Schultag erinnern.
I can only vaguely remember my first day of school.
Usage tips
Opposite pairs
The adjective 'dunkel' (dark) is often used in contrast to its opposite 'hell' (light/bright). This applies to light and colors as well as to figurative meanings such as sounds.
EXAMPLE
Im Winter wird es früh dunkel und spät hell.
In winter, it gets dark early and light late.
Word composition
To describe a color as a dark variant, 'dunkel' (dark) is simply placed before the color adjective. It then forms a new compound adjective.
EXAMPLE
Sie trägt am liebsten dunkelgrüne Kleidung.
She prefers wearing dark green clothing.
Typical collocations
In the figurative meaning 'geheimnisvoll' (mysterious) or 'zwielichtig' (shady), 'dunkel' (dark) is often combined with nouns such as 'Vergangenheit' (past), 'Geheimnis' (secret), 'Ahnung' (premonition), or 'Kapitel' (chapter).
EXAMPLE
Er hat eine dunkle Ahnung, dass etwas nicht stimmt.
He has a dark suspicion that something is wrong.
Context clue
When 'dunkel' (dark/deep) describes a sound, it means a low, resonant tone. It is used almost exclusively for voices or musical instruments.
EXAMPLE
Das Cello erzeugt einen warmen, dunklen Klang.
The cello produces a warm, deep sound.
Fixed expression
The expression 'sich dunkel an etwas erinnern' (to vaguely remember something) is a fixed combination. It means that the memory is only vague and imprecise.
EXAMPLE
Ich kann mich nur dunkel an das Gesicht des Mannes erinnern.
I can only vaguely remember the man's face.
Compare with
dunkel vs schwarz
black
Schwarz and dunkel can both refer to a very dark color. Schwarz names the color itself, while dunkel also describes other deep shades such as blue or green. Use schwarz for true black and dunkel when a color has little brightness or is approaching black.
dunkel
Für das Wohnzimmer wählte sie ein dunkles Grün.
She chose a dark green for the living room.
schwarz
Die neue Jacke ist tiefschwarz.
The new jacket is jet black.
In real life
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