candle
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candle
A source of light made of wax or a similar material with a wick in the middle, which gives off light and heat when lit.
Zum Geburtstag haben wir eine Torte mit Kerzen darauf bekommen.
For our birthday, we got a cake with candles on it.
You can easily recognize the meaning of 'Kerze' (candle) from the context. If it is about light, birthdays, or romance, it means a wax candle. In a sports context, it is a gymnastics exercise. In connection with cars and engines, it means a spark plug.
Mach bitte die Kerzen auf dem Kuchen an.
Please light the candles on the cake.
There are fixed verbs for a wax candle. You can 'eine Kerze anzünden' (light a candle, to make it burn) or 'auspusten' (blow it out, to extinguish it). When it is giving light, 'die Kerze brennt' (the candle is burning).
Vergiss nicht, die Kerzen auszupusten, bevor du schlafen gehst.
Don't forget to blow out the candles before you go to sleep.
The gymnastics exercise is almost always combined with the verb 'machen' (to do/make). The fixed expression is 'eine Kerze machen' (to do a shoulder stand).
Kannst du eine Kerze machen, ohne mit den Beinen zu wackeln?
Can you do a shoulder stand without wobbling your legs?
When 'Kerze' (candle) means a spark plug, it is often used in the plural. Typical verbs are 'wechseln' (to replace) or 'prüfen' (to check), and the topic is usually a car or an engine.
Die Werkstatt hat bei meinem Auto die Kerzen gewechselt.
The repair shop replaced the spark plugs in my car.
light
'das Licht' and 'die Kerze' both belong to the area of brightness. 'das Licht' means the brightness itself, or sometimes also a lamp or another source of light. 'die Kerze' is a concrete object made of wax with a wick that you light. A candle gives off light, but it is not the same as light. Learners may confuse the words because you use both when it is dark. If you mean the brightness, you say 'Licht'. If you mean the object, you say 'Kerze'.
Bei Stromausfall stellte Maria eine Kerze auf den Küchentisch.
During the power outage, Maria put a candle on the kitchen table.
Im Flur ist das Licht kaputt, deshalb sieht man kaum etwas.
The light in the hallway is broken, so you can hardly see anything.