belt
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belt
A strip made of leather, fabric, or another material that is worn around the waist to hold clothing, usually trousers or skirts, or as a fashion accessory.
Meine Hose ist zu weit, ich brauche einen Gürtel.
My trousers are too loose; I need a belt.
belt / zone
An area that surrounds something in a ring-like shape, often in a geographical or figurative sense.
Um die Stadt zieht sich ein grüner Gürtel aus Parks und Wäldern.
A green belt of parks and forests stretches around the city.
belt
In martial arts, a colored band that indicates a fighter's rank or level of experience.
Er hat hart trainiert, um den schwarzen Gürtel zu bekommen.
He trained hard to get the black belt.
The idiom 'den Gürtel enger schnallen müssen' means that you have to save money and get by with less. It is used figuratively and has nothing to do with clothing.
Seit er seinen Job verloren hat, muss die ganze Familie den Gürtel enger schnallen.
Since he lost his job, the whole family has had to tighten their belts.
In connection with the item of clothing, verbs such as 'tragen' (to wear), 'anlegen' (to put on), 'umschnallen' (to strap on), or 'zumachen' (to fasten) are often used.
Er trug einen eleganten Ledergürtel zu seiner Jeans.
He wore an elegant leather belt with his jeans.
In the geographical meaning, 'Gürtel' is often part of compound nouns. Well-known examples are 'der Grüngürtel' (a green belt around a city) or 'der Speckgürtel' (the wealthy suburbs around a large city).
Am Wochenende fahren viele Familien zum Spazieren in den Grüngürtel.
On the weekend, many families go for a walk in the green belt.
You can always recognize this meaning from the context of 'Kampfsport' (martial arts), e.g. karate or judo. Usually the belt is mentioned together with a color that indicates the athlete's rank.
Sie hat jahrelang trainiert, um den schwarzen Gürtel in Karate zu bekommen.
She trained for years to get the black belt in karate.
ring
Both words can refer to an area that surrounds a city in a circle. A Ring is often a narrower line, road, or route, while a Gürtel usually refers to a wider strip of land. Use „Ring“ for the circular traffic route and „Gürtel“ for the surrounding zone.
Ein breiter Grüngürtel umgibt die Stadt.
A wide greenbelt surrounds the city.
Wir fahren auf dem Ring um das Stadtzentrum herum.
We are driving around the city center on the ring road.
