to criticize
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to criticize
To point out and complain about mistakes, shortcomings, or negative aspects of a person, thing, or behavior; to express disapproval.
Die Opposition kritisierte den Haushaltsentwurf der Regierung als unsozial.
The opposition criticized the government's draft budget as antisocial.
'Kritisieren' (to criticize) belongs to a word family with the noun 'die Kritik' (criticism/critique) and the adjective 'kritisch' (critical). The ending '-isieren' is typical for verbs that were borrowed from foreign languages.
Seine kritische Haltung wurde nicht von allen geteilt.
His critical attitude was not shared by everyone.
You always criticize a person or thing in the accusative. If you want to name the point of criticism, you can use the preposition 'an' (+ dative): 'etwas an jemandem/etwas kritisieren' (to criticize something about someone/something).
Ich kritisiere nicht dich als Person, sondern nur dein Verhalten.
I'm not criticizing you as a person, only your behavior.
To express the intensity of the criticism, 'kritisieren' (to criticize) is often combined with adverbs such as 'scharf' (strongly/harshly), 'heftig' (severely), 'deutlich' (clearly), or 'öffentlich' (publicly).
Der Plan wurde von Umweltschützern scharf kritisiert.
The plan was harshly criticized by environmentalists.
The meaning 'to judge expertly' is used especially in an academic or artistic context. Typical objects here are 'ein Buch' (a book), 'ein Film' (a film), 'ein Kunstwerk' (a work of art), or 'eine Theorie' (a theory).
Die Literaturkritikerin kritisierte den neuen Roman für seine schwachen Charaktere.
The literary critic critiqued the new novel for its weak characters.
to sentence / condemn
'verurteilen' and 'kritisieren' can both express that you think something is bad. 'kritisieren' usually means pointing out mistakes or problems. That can be harsh, but it can also be factual and helpful. 'verurteilen' is stronger: you clearly reject something on moral grounds, or a court imposes a sentence. Learners may confuse the words because both sound negative. If you are only saying what was done wrong or badly, 'kritisieren' fits. If you are very clearly rejecting an action or talking about a court, 'verurteilen' fits.
Im Team kritisiert Anna den Plan, weil wichtige Informationen fehlen.
In the team, Anna criticizes the plan because important information is missing.
Viele Menschen verurteilen die Gewalt bei der Demonstration.
Many people condemn the violence at the demonstration.