chalk
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chalk
A soft, white or colored material made from limestone that is used for writing or drawing on blackboards.
Die Lehrerin schrieb die Hausaufgaben mit weißer Kreide an die Tafel.
The teacher wrote the homework on the board with white chalk.
'Kreide' (chalk) is usually an uncountable material. When you mean a single item, you use the combination 'ein Stück Kreide' (a piece of chalk).
Gibst du mir bitte ein Stück Kreide?
Could you please give me a piece of chalk?
In the context of school or drawing, 'Kreide' (chalk) is often used with the preposition 'mit' (with): 'mit Kreide schreiben' (to write with chalk) or 'mit Kreide malen' (to draw with chalk).
Die Kinder malen mit bunter Straßenkreide auf dem Gehweg.
The children are drawing on the sidewalk with colorful sidewalk chalk.
The idiom 'bei jemandem in der Kreide stehen' (to be in someone's debt) has a fixed structure. The person to whom you owe something always appears in the dative after the preposition 'bei'.
Er hat mir beim Umzug geholfen, jetzt stehe ich bei ihm in der Kreide.
He helped me move, so now I am in his debt.
The idiom comes from the time when innkeepers or merchants wrote their customers' debts on a board with chalk. Someone who 'in der Kreide stand' (stood in the chalk) had their name recorded on the debt list.
Seit ich mir Geld von ihr geliehen habe, stehe ich bei ihr tief in der Kreide.
Ever since I borrowed money from her, I have been deeply in her debt.
limescale / lime
'Kalk' and 'Kreide' are related because chalk can be made of lime-containing material and both are often white. Even so, they are used in different situations. 'Kalk' is usually used for deposits from water, building materials, or material for soil and construction. 'Kreide' is the soft material you use to write on a board or draw on the ground. Learners may confuse the words because both are white and mineral. In class or when drawing, 'Kreide' is correct. For white marks in the bathroom or in the kettle, 'Kalk' is correct.
Die Lehrerin schreibt die neuen Wörter mit Kreide an die Tafel.
The teacher writes the new words on the board with chalk.
Im Wasserkocher ist so viel Kalk, dass ich ihn reinigen muss.
There is so much limescale in the kettle that I need to clean it.