inventor
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inventor
A person who develops or discovers a new thing, a new method, or a new concept. The female counterpart is 'die Erfinderin' (female inventor).
Thomas Edison gilt als der Erfinder der langlebigen Glühbirne.
Thomas Edison is considered the inventor of the long-lasting light bulb.
'Der Erfinder' (the inventor) is derived directly from the verb 'erfinden' (to invent). The ending '-er' is attached to the verb stem to indicate the male person who performs the action—a very common pattern in German.
Wer hat eigentlich das Rad erfunden?
Who actually invented the wheel?
To connect the invention with the inventor, you use either the genitive or the preposition 'von' (of/by) with the dative. The genitive is more formal.
Johannes Gutenberg ist der Erfinder des modernen Buchdrucks.
Johannes Gutenberg is the inventor of modern book printing.
A very common formulation for attributing an invention to someone is the expression 'gilt als der Erfinder von etwas' (is considered the inventor of something).
Karl Drais gilt als der Erfinder des Fahrrads.
Karl Drais is considered the inventor of the bicycle.
author
'der Autor' and 'der Erfinder' can both refer to a person who has created something new. The difference is: in this relation, 'Autor' is used more for ideas, plans, or concepts and means the intellectual creator. 'Erfinder' is used more for a new thing, method, or technical idea. You can confuse the words because both emphasize the origin of something. When it is about a text or a concept, 'Autor' is appropriate. When someone has developed something new or created a new solution, 'Erfinder' is more precise.
Der Erfinder stellte in der Schule eine Maschine vor, die Wasser spart.
The inventor presented a machine at school that saves water.
Timo gilt als Autor des neuen Plans für das Projekt.
Timo is considered the author of the new plan for the project.