municipal council / council member
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municipal council
The elected political body that represents the citizens of a municipality and decides on local matters.
Der Gemeinderat hat den Bau des neuen Kindergartens beschlossen.
The municipal council approved the construction of the new kindergarten.
council member
A person who is a member of the municipal council; a councilman or councilwoman.
Als neu gewählter Gemeinderat setzt er sich für bessere Radwege ein.
As a newly elected council member, he is advocating for better bike paths.
'Der Gemeinderat' (municipal council / council member) consists of 'die Gemeinde' (a town or village/municipality) and 'der Rat' (here in the sense of 'body' or 'council'). So it is the body that politically leads a municipality.
Der Gemeinderat trifft sich einmal im Monat im Rathaus.
The municipal council meets once a month at the town hall.
You can tell whether the body (m01) or a person (m02) is meant from the verb. If the subject acts as a group ('der Gemeinderat beschließt' — the municipal council decides), the body is meant. If it refers to a person ('er ist Gemeinderat' — he is a council member), a member is meant.
Der Gemeinderat hat den neuen Plan einstimmig angenommen.
The municipal council unanimously approved the new plan.
When 'Gemeinderat' (municipal council) refers to the body, it is often combined with verbs that describe a collective action. These include: 'tagen' (to meet/be in session), 'beschließen' (to decide/approve), 'entscheiden' (to decide), 'zustimmen' (to agree/approve), or 'ablehnen' (to reject).
Der Gemeinderat tagt heute Abend, um über das Budget zu beraten.
The municipal council is meeting this evening to discuss the budget.
advice / council
Both words can refer to a political body that makes decisions. Rat is a general term and works when the municipal context is already clear; Gemeinderat explicitly refers to a municipality's council. Use Gemeinderat when you want to make the local connection clear.
Der Gemeinderat entschied am Montag über den neuen Spielplatz.
The municipal council decided on the new playground on Monday.
In unserer Gemeinde tagte der Rat am Montag und entschied über den neuen Spielplatz.
The council met in our municipality on Monday and decided on the new playground.
