section / paragraph
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section
A numbered section in a legal or official text, such as a law or contract. The symbol for it is §.
Laut Paragraph 242 des Bürgerlichen Gesetzbuches sind Verträge nach Treu und Glauben zu erfüllen.
According to Section 242 of the German Civil Code, contracts must be performed in good faith.
paragraph
A section in a text that deals with a specific idea. In German, the word 'Absatz' is usually used for this.
Der Autor widmet dem Thema einen ganzen Paragraphen im zweiten Kapitel.
The author devotes an entire paragraph to the topic in the second chapter.
Careful: 'der Paragraph' (section) is not the same as the English 'paragraph'! In German, 'Paragraph' almost always means a numbered section in a law or contract (§). A normal section of text is called 'der Absatz' (paragraph).
Bitte lies den nächsten Absatz laut vor.
Please read the next paragraph aloud.
The symbol § is pronounced 'Paragraph' in German. So if you read '§ 1', you say 'Paragraph eins' (Section one).
Das steht in § 10 des Vertrags.
That is stated in § 10 of the contract.
When referring to a section, German often uses the preposition 'in' or 'laut' and leaves out the article. The number follows directly after the word.
Laut Paragraph 3 der Schulordnung ist das Rauchen verboten.
According to Section 3 of the school rules, smoking is prohibited.
In legal contexts, the word is often combined with certain verbs, for example 'sich auf einen Paragraphen berufen' (to invoke a section) or 'gegen einen Paragraphen verstoßen' (to violate a section).
Der Anwalt berief sich auf einen wenig bekannten Paragraphen.
The lawyer invoked a little-known section.
article
Artikel and Paragraph can both refer to a numbered section of a legal text. Which word is appropriate depends on the document’s official structure. For example, Artikel is used in constitutions, while a section marked with § is called a Paragraph.
Die Regelung steht in Paragraph 5 des Gesetzes.
The provision is set out in Section 5 of the law.
Die Regelung steht in Artikel 5 der Verfassung.
The provision is set out in Article 5 of the constitution.
