committed / engaged
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committed
When a person devotes themselves to a cause, person, or task with a lot of effort and interest.
Sie ist eine sehr engagierte Lehrerin, die sich um jeden Schüler kümmert.
She is a very committed teacher who looks after every student.
engaged / hired
Describes that someone, especially an artist or actor, has been contracted for a particular role or project.
Der für die Hauptrolle engagierte Schauspieler fiel leider krankheitsbedingt aus.
The actor engaged for the lead role unfortunately had to drop out due to illness.
'Engagiert' (committed / engaged) is the past participle of the verb '(sich) engagieren' (to get involved / to commit oneself) and is used as an adjective. This pattern is common with many verbs borrowed from French, e.g. 'interessiert' (interested) from 'interessieren' (to interest).
Er engagiert sich für den Umweltschutz.
He is committed to environmental protection.
'Engagiert' (committed / engaged) does not mean 'verlobt sein' (to be engaged to be married), like the English word 'engaged'. For 'verlobt' (engaged to be married), German uses the word 'verlobt'. 'Engagiert' means 'with a lot of dedication' or 'passionately involved'.
Meine Schwester ist seit letztem Jahr verlobt.
My sister has been engaged since last year.
The meaning 'committed to a cause' is general. The meaning 'contracted' is specific to the field of arts and culture, e.g. with actors, musicians, or directors.
Sie ist eine engagierte Tierschützerin.
She is a committed animal rights activist.
If you want to express what someone is committed to, you use the preposition 'für' with the accusative or 'in' with the dative. The corresponding verb is 'sich engagieren' (to get involved / to commit oneself).
Er ist stark in der Lokalpolitik engagiert.
He is heavily involved in local politics.
'Engagiert' (committed) is often combined with adverbs to describe the degree of commitment, e.g. 'stark engagiert' (highly committed), 'politisch engagiert' (politically active/committed), or 'sozial engagiert' (socially committed).
Sie war schon als Studentin politisch sehr engagiert.
She was already very politically active as a student.
active
Both words describe a person who participates in something. „Aktiv“ primarily confirms actual participation or involvement; „engagiert“ additionally emphasizes particular effort and personal interest. Use „aktiv“ for participation and „engagiert“ for clearly above-average commitment.
Mara arbeitet im Verein engagiert mit und übernimmt zusätzliche Aufgaben.
Mara works enthusiastically with the association and takes on additional tasks.
Mara ist im Verein aktiv und nimmt regelmäßig an den Treffen teil.
Mara is active in the association and regularly attends the meetings.
