to kiss
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to kiss
To press the lips onto another person's lips or another part of their body, or onto an object, usually as a sign of love, affection, friendship, or reverence.
Zum Abschied küsste er sie auf die Wange.
He kissed her on the cheek to say goodbye.
to be kissed by the muse
To receive sudden and strong creative inspiration.
Der Künstler wartete tagelang auf eine Idee, bis er endlich von der Muse geküsst wurde.
The artist waited for days for an idea until he was finally kissed by the muse.
The verb 'küssen' (to kiss) is directly connected to the noun 'der Kuss' (the kiss). If you know one word, you can easily remember the other.
Er gab ihr zum Abschied einen Kuss.
He gave her a kiss to say goodbye.
The person or thing being kissed is always in the accusative. If you specify the exact place, you use the preposition 'auf' with the accusative.
Die Mutter küsst ihr Kind auf die Stirn.
The mother kisses her child on the forehead.
When two people kiss each other, the reflexive form 'sich küssen' is used. The subject is then plural.
Das Paar küsste sich leidenschaftlich.
The couple kissed each other passionately.
The idiom 'von der Muse geküsst werden' (to be kissed by the muse) is a fixed unit and is used in the passive. It describes the moment when you have a sudden creative inspiration.
Nach einer langen Pause wurde die Autorin endlich wieder von der Muse geküsst und schrieb ein neues Kapitel.
After a long break, the author was finally kissed by the muse again and wrote a new chapter.
to make out
Both verbs refer to passionate kissing. „Küssen“ is neutral and can also refer to a single kiss, whereas „knutschen“ is colloquial and usually expresses longer or more intense kissing. Use „küssen“ neutrally and „knutschen“ when the casual, more intense nuance fits.
Vor dem Abschied küsste sie ihn kurz auf die Wange.
Before saying goodbye, she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.
Das junge Paar knutschte lange auf der Parkbank.
The young couple made out for a long time on the park bench.
