to compress
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to compress
To reduce the file size of digital data (e.g., images, videos, documents) using an algorithm so that they require less storage space.
Du musst die Bilder komprimieren, bevor du sie per E-Mail versendest.
You need to compress the images before you send them by email.
to compress
To press something together by applying pressure so that it takes up less volume or becomes denser.
Die Müllpresse komprimiert den Abfall zu kleinen Würfeln.
The trash compactor compresses the waste into small cubes.
to condense
To shorten and summarize information, a text, or a presentation down to the essentials.
Für die Präsentation müssen wir den 100-seitigen Bericht auf fünf Folien komprimieren.
For the presentation, we have to condense the 100-page report into five slides.
The verb comes from Latin 'comprimere' (to press together). The prefix 'kom-' means 'together'. This basic idea of pressing together or compacting appears in all meanings: with data, with materials, and with information.
Für den Transport wird das Heu zu Ballen komprimiert.
For transport, the hay is compressed into bales.
You can tell which meaning is intended from the object of the verb. If it is 'Dateien' (files) or 'Bilder' (images), it is about computers (m01). With 'Gas' (gas) or 'Abfall' (waste), it is a physical process (m02). With 'Informationen' (information) or 'einem Bericht' (a report), summarizing is meant (m03).
Ich muss die Videodatei komprimieren, sie ist zu groß.
I need to compress the video file; it's too large.
To describe the result of compressing, the prepositions 'zu' (into) or 'auf' (to/down to) are often used. You compress material 'zu' a new form or information 'auf' a smaller scope.
Die Maschine komprimiert die alten Autos zu Metallwürfeln.
The machine compresses the old cars into metal cubes.
In a digital context, typical objects are 'Dateien' (files), 'Bilder' (images), 'Videos' (videos), or 'Ordner' (folders). The result is often a ZIP file or another compressed format.
Wenn du viele Fotos verschicken willst, solltest du den Ordner komprimieren.
If you want to send a lot of photos, you should compress the folder.
to pack / grab / manage
With digital data, packen can mean combining several files into a single archive; however, this use is not covered by the meanings given here. komprimieren explicitly means reducing the file size. An archive can therefore be packed without its data being heavily compressed.
Nora komprimiert alle Fotos, damit sie weniger Speicherplatz benötigen.
Nora compresses all the photos so that they take up less storage space.
Nora packt alle Fotos in ein gemeinsames Archiv.
Nora packs all the photos into a single archive.
