to interest
Loading your saved state.
to be interested in
To show curiosity or intellectual interest in someone or something; to want to learn more about something.
Er interessiert sich sehr für moderne Kunst und besucht oft Museen.
He is very interested in modern art and often visits museums.
This verb has two important structures. Either the person is the subject (reflexive: 'Ich interessiere mich für...' — I am interested in...), or the thing is the subject (transitive: 'Das Thema interessiert mich.' — The topic interests me.). Both sentences mean the same thing, but the focus is different.
Ich interessiere mich für Geschichte.
I am interested in history.
When the person actively shows interest, the reflexive form 'sich interessieren' (to be interested) is used. This construction always needs the preposition 'für' followed by the accusative.
Wofür interessierst du dich?
What are you interested in?
When a thing or topic awakens attention, that thing is the subject of the sentence. The person who feels the interest is then the accusative object.
Dieses Buch interessiert mich überhaupt nicht.
This book does not interest me at all.
to occupy / employ
'interessieren' and 'beschäftigen' can both mean that a topic gets a person's attention. 'sich interessieren für' mainly says: you find something interesting and want to know more about it. 'sich beschäftigen mit' says more strongly: you spend time on a topic or work on it. 'beschäftigen' can also mean that a topic stays on someone's mind, sometimes because of worries. Learners confuse the words because both have to do with attention. In practical terms: interest is more like curiosity, while Beschäftigung is more like active work or intensive thinking.
Seit der Reise interessiert sich Lisa sehr für alte Städte.
Since the trip, Lisa has been very interested in old cities.
Vor der Prüfung beschäftigt sich Mehmet jeden Abend mit Grammatik.
Before the exam, Mehmet spends every evening working on grammar.