capital
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capital
In economics, the sum of money or assets available for investments or for starting a business.
Um eine Firma zu gründen, benötigt man ein gewisses Startkapital.
To start a company, you need a certain amount of startup capital.
'Kapital' (capital) is a base word for many terms from economics. If you see 'Kapital' in a compound word, it is usually about money or finance.
Für die Gründung braucht man Startkapital.
You need startup capital to found a company.
In an economic context, 'Kapital' (capital) is often combined with certain verbs: you can raise, provide, invest, or put capital into something.
Die Firma will neues Kapital beschaffen, um zu wachsen.
The company wants to raise new capital in order to grow.
In a figurative sense, 'Kapital' (asset) refers to a valuable, non-financial resource. It often means people's skills and knowledge.
Ihre Sprachkenntnisse sind ein großes Kapital auf dem Arbeitsmarkt.
Her language skills are a great asset on the job market.
The expression 'aus etwas Kapital schlagen' (to capitalize on something) has a fixed structure. The thing you gain an advantage from is always in the dative after the preposition 'aus'.
Sie schlug aus der großen Nachfrage schnell Kapital.
She quickly capitalized on the strong demand.
When 'Das Kapital' is mentioned as a book title, it refers to the famous work by Karl Marx. In texts, the title is often put in quotation marks or italics.
Sie musste für die Prüfung ein Kapitel aus „Das Kapital“ zusammenfassen.
For the exam, she had to summarize a chapter from Capital.
money
'das Geld' and 'das Kapital' can both refer to financial resources. 'Geld' is the general word for what you own, earn, save, or spend. 'Kapital' is used more in economic contexts, especially when money or other assets are available for a company, a project, or an investment. The words can be confused because capital often consists of money. But not every sum of money is called capital. For shopping at the supermarket, you say 'Geld'; for starting a business or making an investment, 'Kapital' fits better.
Für die neue Firma braucht sie mehr Kapital.
She needs more capital for the new company.
Mein Freund hat gestern im Bus sein Geld verloren.
My friend lost his money on the bus yesterday.