das Glühwürmchen
glowworm
A small beetle whose abdomen glows in the dark to attract mates.
EXAMPLE
In der warmen Sommernacht sahen wir ein Glühwürmchen im Gras leuchten.
On the warm summer night, we saw a glowworm glowing in the grass.
das Glühwürmchen
glowworm
das Glühwürmchen, die Glühwürmchen
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Meanings
Forms
Forms adapted from the German Wiktionary entry Glühwürmchen, by Wiktionary contributors, licence CC BY-SA 4.0.
At a glance
| gender | neuter das |
|---|---|
| plural | die Glühwürmchen |
| genitive | des Glühwürmchens |
The four cases
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | das Glühwürmchen | die Glühwürmchen |
| accusative | das Glühwürmchen | die Glühwürmchen |
| dative | dem Glühwürmchen | den Glühwürmchen |
| genitive | des Glühwürmchens | der Glühwürmchen |
The article changes with the case; it is shown in colour.
Usage tips
Word formation
'Glühwürmchen' (glowworm) is made up of 'Glüh-' (glow) and 'Würmchen' (little worm). 'Glüh-' refers to glowing, while 'Würmchen' is the diminutive of 'Wurm' (worm), so the word literally describes a little glowing worm.
EXAMPLE
Am Rand des Waldes entdeckten die Kinder mehrere Glühwürmchen.
The children discovered several glowworms at the edge of the forest.
Diminutive form
The suffix '-chen' turns 'Wurm' (worm) into the diminutive 'Würmchen' (little worm). Words ending in '-chen' are grammatically neuter, which is why we say 'das Glühwürmchen' (the glowworm).
EXAMPLE
Ein Glühwürmchen saß auf einem Blatt.
A glowworm was sitting on a leaf.
Typical collocations
'Glühwürmchen' (glowworm) often occurs with verbs such as 'sehen' (to see), 'entdecken' (to discover), 'beobachten' (to observe), and 'leuchten' (to glow). Typical expressions of place and time include 'im Gras' (in the grass), 'im Garten' (in the garden), 'in der Dämmerung' (at dusk), and 'in der Nacht' (at night).
EXAMPLE
Wir beobachteten im Garten ein Glühwürmchen, das zwischen den Pflanzen leuchtete.
In the garden, we watched a glowworm glowing among the plants.
In real life
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