black ice
das Glatteis
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black ice
A smooth layer of ice on roads, paths, or other surfaces, usually caused by freezing rain, that makes walking or driving dangerous.
Wegen des Glatteises musste der Bus besonders langsam fahren.
Because of the black ice, the bus had to drive particularly slowly.
to tread on thin ice
To put yourself in a difficult or risky situation in which it is easy to make a mistake.
Mit dieser ungenauen Aussage begibt sich der Minister aufs Glatteis.
With this imprecise statement, the minister is treading on thin ice.
to trip someone up
To deliberately put someone in a difficult or embarrassing situation, often by misleading them or catching them off guard with a trick question.
Lass dich von seinen freundlichen Worten nicht aufs Glatteis führen.
Don't let him trip you up with his friendly words.
| gender | neuter das |
|---|---|
| genitive | des Glatteises |
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | das Glatteis | – |
| accusative | das Glatteis | – |
| dative | dem Glatteis | – |
| genitive | des Glatteises | – |
The article changes with the case; it is shown in colour.
'Glatteis' (black ice) consists of 'glatt' (smooth / slippery) and 'Eis' (ice). The image of a surface on which you can easily slip also helps you understand the figurative expressions: there is a risk of making a mistake.
Auf der Brücke hat sich über Nacht Glatteis gebildet.
Black ice formed on the bridge overnight.
In weather forecasts and traffic reports, 'vor Glatteis warnen' (to warn of black ice), 'mit Glatteis rechnen' (to expect black ice), and 'bei Glatteis' (in conditions of black ice) are typical collocations. 'Mit Glatteis rechnen' (to expect black ice) indicates that black ice is possible or should be expected.
Auf den Nebenstraßen müssen Sie heute Abend mit Glatteis rechnen.
You should expect black ice on minor roads this evening.
The expression is 'sich aufs Glatteis begeben' (to tread on thin ice): the reflexive pronoun refers to the person taking the risk; 'aufs' is short for 'auf das'. A related expression is 'sich auf dünnes Eis begeben' (to tread on thin ice).
Bei diesem Thema begebe ich mich lieber nicht aufs Glatteis.
I'd rather not tread on thin ice when it comes to this topic.
Wer ohne Vorbereitung über Steuerrecht spricht, begibt sich schnell aufs Glatteis.
Anyone who talks about tax law without preparation can quickly find themselves treading on thin ice.
In 'jemanden aufs Glatteis führen' (to trip someone up), the person being put in a difficult situation is in the accusative case. You can use 'mit' plus the dative to specify which question or claim is used to do this.
Die Moderatorin führte ihren Gast mit einer scheinbar harmlosen Frage aufs Glatteis.
The host tripped her guest up with a seemingly harmless question.
