01
die Meinung
opinion
A personal view, attitude, or belief about a particular topic.
example
Jeder hat das Recht auf eine eigene Meinung.
Everyone has the right to their own opinion.
die Meinung
opinion
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Meanings
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Usage tips
Expressing an opinion
To express your own opinion, the phrase 'Meiner Meinung nach ...' (in my opinion ...) is very common. Note that the verb comes directly after this phrase in position 2 of the main clause.
EXAMPLE
Meiner Meinung nach ist dieser Film sehr sehenswert.
In my opinion, this film is very worth seeing.
Fixed expression with 'sein'
Another common way to express an opinion is the structure 'der Meinung sein, dass ...' (to be of the opinion that ...). Here, a subordinate clause introduced by 'dass' follows.
EXAMPLE
Ich bin der Meinung, dass wir das Projekt verschieben sollten.
I am of the opinion that we should postpone the project.
Typical verbs
Common verbs used with 'Meinung' (opinion) are 'eine Meinung haben' (to have an opinion), 'sich eine Meinung bilden' (to form an opinion), and 'seine Meinung ändern' (to change one's opinion).
EXAMPLE
Es ist wichtig, sich vor einer Entscheidung eine eigene Meinung zu bilden.
It is important to form your own opinion before making a decision.
Evaluating someone
To express what you think about a person, you use the fixed phrase 'eine ... Meinung von jemandem haben' (to have a ... opinion of someone). The person is always in the dative after the preposition 'von'.
EXAMPLE
Er hat eine sehr schlechte Meinung von seinem Nachbarn.
He has a very poor opinion of his neighbor.
Compare with
Meinung vs Gedanke
thought
'die Meinung' and 'der Gedanke' can both arise in a person's mind. However, 'die Meinung' more often means a personal view on a topic, that is, what someone considers right, wrong, good, or bad. 'der Gedanke' is more general: it can be a single idea, a consideration, or even a plan. It is easy to confuse the words because both have to do with thinking. If you are talking about a position in a discussion, 'Meinung' is more natural. If an idea briefly comes into your mind, 'Gedanke' fits better.
Meinung
Die Klasse hat eine klare Meinung zum neuen Essen in der Mensa.
The class has a clear opinion about the new food in the cafeteria.
Gedanke
Wir hatten heute den Gedanken, am Wochenende in den Wald zu fahren.
Today we had the idea of going to the forest on the weekend.
In real life
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