deposit / collateral
Loading your saved state.
deposit
An amount of money that you pay in addition when buying bottles or cans and get back when you return them.
Vergiss nicht, die leeren Flaschen mitzunehmen, damit wir das Pfand zurückbekommen.
Don't forget to take the empty bottles with you so we can get the deposit back.
The meaning is easy to recognize from the context. If it is about bottles, cans, and supermarkets, it refers to the amount of money. If it is about loans, debts, or a pawnshop, it refers to security.
Bring bitte die leeren Flaschen weg, wir brauchen das Pfand.
Please take the empty bottles away; we need the deposit.
The deposit system for beverage packaging is an important part of everyday life and recycling culture in Germany. Almost all supermarkets have machines for returns.
Touristen sind oft überrascht, dass man für Dosen Pfand bezahlen muss.
Tourists are often surprised that you have to pay a deposit for cans.
Typical expressions are 'Pfand bezahlen' (to pay a deposit), 'Pfand zurückbekommen' (to get the deposit back), or 'Pfand auf eine Flasche' (deposit on a bottle). It is also often used in compounds like 'Flaschenpfand' (bottle deposit) or 'Dosenpfand' (can deposit).
Auf diese Saftflasche gibt es 25 Cent Pfand.
There is a 25-cent deposit on this juice bottle.
In the financial meaning, typical verbs are 'als Pfand hinterlegen' (to put up as collateral), 'ein Pfand geben' (to give collateral), or 'ein Pfand auslösen' (to redeem a pawned item, i.e. buy it back).
Sie konnte ihre Kette wieder aus dem Leihhaus auslösen.
She was able to redeem her necklace from the pawnshop.
safety / certainty / security
'die Sicherheit' and 'das Pfand' can both refer to something deposited as a guarantee. 'Sicherheit' is the more general word and is often used for loans or contracts. 'Pfand' is more concrete: it can be an object that you deposit for a debt, or the small deposit on bottles and cans. Learners may confuse the words because a 'Pfand' can be a form of 'Sicherheit'. But in the supermarket or when talking about bottles, you always say 'Pfand'.
Mein Bruder gibt morgen die Flaschen zurück, damit er das Pfand wiederbekommt.
My brother is returning the bottles tomorrow so he can get the deposit back.
Als Sicherheit hinterlegt der Kunde seine wertvolle Uhr.
The customer leaves his valuable watch as collateral.