minimum
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minimum
The smallest possible or a very small amount, the smallest possible measure, or the lowest degree of something.
Er beschränkt seine Ausgaben auf ein absolutes Minimum, um Geld zu sparen.
He limits his expenses to an absolute minimum in order to save money.
'Minimum' is a word from Latin and means 'the smallest'. It is often used in a somewhat more formal or technical context.
Die Anforderungen für das Projekt wurden auf ein Minimum reduziert.
The requirements for the project were reduced to a minimum.
A very common construction is 'auf ein Minimum' (to a minimum) in combination with verbs such as 'reduzieren' (to reduce), 'beschränken' (to limit), or 'senken' (to lower). It expresses that something is reduced to the smallest possible amount.
Wir müssen unsere Kosten auf ein Minimum reduzieren.
We have to reduce our costs to a minimum.
'Minimum' is often combined with adjectives to specify the type of minimum level. Common combinations are 'ein absolutes Minimum' (an absolute minimum), 'ein gesetzliches Minimum' (a legal minimum), or 'das Existenzminimum' (the subsistence minimum).
Der Lärmpegel sollte auf ein absolutes Minimum beschränkt werden.
The noise level should be limited to an absolute minimum.
You can recognize the mathematical meaning from signal words such as 'Funktion' (function), 'Kurve' (curve), 'berechnen' (to calculate), 'finden' (to find), or 'bestimmen' (to determine). Here it refers to the exact smallest value of a function.
Der Lehrer erklärte, wie man das Minimum einer Parabel berechnet.
The teacher explained how to calculate the minimum of a parabola.
limit
'das Minimum' and 'das Limit' often stand in an opposition between lower and upper boundaries. 'das Minimum' means the smallest necessary or possible amount, so the lower boundary. 'das Limit' usually means a fixed upper boundary that you may not or cannot exceed. The contrast is especially clear with quantities, money, time, or performance: with the minimum, you ask how little is at least necessary; with the limit, you ask how much is allowed or possible at most.
Für die Anmeldung sind 50 Euro das Minimum.
For registration, 50 euros is the minimum.
Wir setzen beim Einkaufen ein Limit, damit wir nicht zu viel Geld ausgeben.
We set a limit when shopping so that we do not spend too much money.