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A word borrowed from English that is used especially in youth language to mean 'zufällig' (random/by chance), 'willkürlich' (arbitrary), or 'beliebig' (any).
Wir haben uns nicht verabredet, ich habe sie ganz random in der Stadt getroffen.
We hadn't arranged to meet; I ran into her completely randomly in town.
weird
Also used in youth language to describe something or someone as 'seltsam' (strange), 'eigenartig' (odd), or 'nicht nachvollziehbar' (hard to understand).
Seine Reaktion war total random, das hat niemand verstanden.
His reaction was totally weird; nobody understood it.
The word 'random' is an anglicism used almost exclusively in youth language and informal online communication. In formal situations or when speaking with older people, it sounds inappropriate.
Die Party war mega, da waren voll die random Leute.
The party was awesome; there were a bunch of totally random people there.
'Random' is usually used unchanged as an adverb or predicative adjective and is not declined. So it often comes after the noun or verb.
Seine Frage war total random.
His question was totally random.
Besides 'zufällig' (random/by chance), 'random' is also used in youth language to describe something as 'seltsam' (strange), 'unerwartet' (unexpected), or 'nicht nachvollziehbar' (hard to understand). In this meaning, it is often negative or expresses surprise.
Warum er das gemacht hat? Keine Ahnung, das war einfach nur random.
Why did he do that? No idea, that was just totally random.
funny / strange
Both words can refer to unexpected or inexplicable behavior. „Random“ is youth slang and particularly emphasizes that something happens without any recognizable connection or context. „Komisch“ is broader in standard German and simply describes a strange impression; in neutral situations, „komisch“ is therefore usually the better fit.
Es war total random, dass Lara im Gespräch plötzlich über ihren alten Toaster sprach.
It was totally random that Lara suddenly started talking about her old toaster during the conversation.
Es war komisch, dass Lara im Gespräch plötzlich über ihren alten Toaster sprach.
It was strange that Lara suddenly started talking about her old toaster during the conversation.
