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miserabel
miserable
Of extremely poor quality or at a very low level.
example
Das Essen im Hotel war wirklich miserabel.
The food at the hotel was truly miserable.
miserabel
miserable
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Meanings
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Usage tips
Word family
The adjective 'miserabel' (miserable) is related to the noun 'die Misere' (misery/plight), which means 'great misery' or 'emergency situation'. This connection helps you understand the strength of the word: it does not just mean 'bad', but 'wretched' or 'pathetic'.
EXAMPLE
Die Mannschaft befindet sich nach der Niederlage in einer echten Misere.
After the defeat, the team is in a real plight.
Register
'Miserabel' (miserable) is a strong and expressive word. It is often used to emphasize great dissatisfaction or a very bad feeling and sounds somewhat more elevated than just 'schlecht' (bad).
EXAMPLE
Die Arbeitsbedingungen in der Fabrik waren miserabel.
The working conditions in the factory were miserable.
Typical collocations
When referring to poor quality, 'miserabel' (miserable) often describes abstract things such as performance, a result, mood, or the weather.
EXAMPLE
Trotz des miserablen Wetters machten wir einen Spaziergang.
Despite the miserable weather, we went for a walk.
Sentence structure
To express that someone feels bad, there are two typical constructions: 'sich miserabel fühlen' (to feel miserable) or the dative construction 'jemandem ist miserabel' (someone feels miserable).
EXAMPLE
Nach der langen Reise fühlte ich mich miserabel.
After the long trip, I felt miserable.
Compare with
miserabel vs schlecht
bad
'schlecht' and 'miserabel' can both describe something negative, for example quality, performance, or how you feel. 'schlecht' is more neutral and very common. 'miserabel' is much stronger: it means not just bad, but very bad or truly wretched. That is why 'miserabel' fits well when you want to clearly emphasize poor quality or a bad feeling. For normal, less strong criticism, 'schlecht' is more natural.
miserabel
Nach der langen Busfahrt fühle ich mich miserabel.
After the long bus ride, I feel miserable.
schlecht
Am Abend spielt Mehmet schlecht, weil er vom Training noch müde ist.
In the evening, Mehmet plays badly because he is still tired from training.
In real life
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