adhesive / glue
Loading your saved state.
adhesive / glue
A substance used to join two or more surfaces together by hardening after it is applied. Colloquially, people often say 'Kleber' (glue).
Ich brauche einen starken Klebstoff, um das zerbrochene Porzellan zu reparieren.
I need a strong adhesive to repair the broken porcelain.
The word is made up of the verb 'kleben' (to stick/glue) and the noun 'Stoff' (substance/material). So it literally describes a 'Stoff zum Kleben' (substance for gluing).
Für diese Bastelarbeit benötigen wir Papier, Schere und Klebstoff.
For this craft project, we need paper, scissors, and glue.
'Klebstoff' (adhesive/glue) belongs to a word family with the verb 'kleben' (to stick/glue) and the adjective 'klebrig' (sticky). If you know one word, you can understand the others more easily.
Meine Finger sind vom Klebstoff ganz klebrig.
My fingers are completely sticky from the glue.
Common verbs used with 'Klebstoff' (adhesive/glue) are 'auftragen' (to apply), 'entfernen' (to remove), and 'verwenden' (to use). Typical adjectives are 'flüssig' (liquid), 'stark' (strong), or 'wasserfest' (waterproof).
Tragen Sie den Klebstoff dünn auf beide Seiten auf.
Apply a thin layer of adhesive to both sides.
glue / sticker
Kleber and Klebstoff can refer to the same substance used to bond surfaces. Kleber is the usual term in everyday speech, while Klebstoff sounds more technical or formal. Here, the choice mainly depends on the linguistic situation.
Im technischen Datenblatt steht, dass dieser Klebstoff schnell trocknet.
The technical data sheet says that this adhesive dries quickly.
Im Alltag sagt Mia, dass dieser Kleber schnell trocknet.
In everyday speech, Mia says that this glue dries quickly.
