skill
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skill
An ability acquired through practice and experience to perform a particular activity well and confidently. Often used in the plural to describe different competencies.
Für diesen Beruf sind handwerkliche Fertigkeiten unerlässlich.
Manual skills are essential for this profession.
'Fertigkeit' (skill) is related to the adjective 'fertig' (finished/ready). A 'Fertigkeit' is an ability that allows you to complete a task well and confidently — so you are 'fertig' or practiced at it.
Mit etwas Übung wirst du die nötige Fertigkeit schnell erlernen.
With a little practice, you will quickly learn the necessary skill.
When talking about a person's competencies, the word is very often used in the plural, 'Fertigkeiten' (skills). It then describes the total set of learned abilities.
Im Lebenslauf sollte man seine besonderen Fertigkeiten auflisten.
You should list your special skills on your résumé.
Common combinations are 'soziale Fertigkeiten' (social skills), 'sprachliche Fertigkeiten' (language skills), or 'technische Fertigkeiten' (technical skills). Typical verbs are 'Fertigkeiten erwerben' (to acquire skills), 'besitzen' (to possess), or 'verbessern' (to improve).
Gute soziale Fertigkeiten sind in diesem Job sehr wichtig.
Good social skills are very important in this job.
The rarer meaning 'Geschicklichkeit' (dexterity/skill) is usually used in the singular. You can often recognize it in phrases such as 'mit großer Fertigkeit' (with great skill) or 'mit technischer Fertigkeit' (with technical skill).
Die Handwerkerin reparierte die Uhr mit bewundernswerter Fertigkeit.
The craftswoman repaired the clock with admirable skill.
art
'die Kunst' and 'die Fertigkeit' can both describe a learned ability. 'die Fertigkeit' is more objective and means that you can perform a specific activity confidently through practice. The word often appears in the plural, for example with professional or practical competencies. 'die Kunst' sounds more special and emphasizes that something is difficult or done very skillfully. Learners may confuse the words because both have to do with practice. When speaking neutrally about ability, 'Fertigkeit' fits better. When you want to emphasize special difficulty or mastery, 'Kunst' fits more naturally.
Max hat im Kurs wichtige Fertigkeiten für den sicheren Umgang mit dem Computer gelernt.
In the course, Max learned important skills for using the computer safely.
Bei der Arbeit war die Kunst, dem Kunden schlechte Nachrichten freundlich zu sagen.
At work, the art was telling the customer bad news in a friendly way.