bird of prey
der Raubvogel, die Raubvögel
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bird of prey
A bird with powerful claws and a curved, sharp beak that hunts and eats other animals. The term is an older name for a bird of prey that is still commonly used in everyday language today.
Ein großer Raubvogel kreiste über dem Feld und hielt nach Mäusen Ausschau.
A large bird of prey circled over the field, looking out for mice.
| gender | masculine der |
|---|---|
| plural | die Raubvögel |
| genitive | des Raubvogels |
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | der Raubvogel | die Raubvögel |
| accusative | den Raubvogel | die Raubvögel |
| dative | dem Raubvogel | den Raubvögeln |
| genitive | des Raubvogels | der Raubvögel |
The article changes with the case; it is shown in colour.
'Raubvogel' is made up of 'Raub' (prey / plunder) and 'Vogel' (bird). Here, the component 'Raub-' refers to capturing other animals and helps you understand the term.
An den kräftigen Krallen erkannte sie, dass es ein Raubvogel war.
She recognized from its powerful claws that it was a bird of prey.
Typical collocations are 'ein Raubvogel schlägt Beute' (a bird of prey catches and kills prey) and 'ein Raubvogel geht auf Beutefang' (a bird of prey goes hunting). 'Beute schlagen' (to catch and kill prey) describes catching and killing a prey animal here.
Der Raubvogel hat eine Maus geschlagen und trägt sie zu seinem Nest.
The bird of prey has caught a mouse and is carrying it to its nest.
To describe the flight of a bird of prey, people often use 'am Himmel kreisen' (to circle in the sky) or 'über den Feldern kreisen' (to circle over the fields). Here, 'kreisen' describes flying in large, roughly circular paths.
Wir beobachteten zwei Raubvögel, die hoch am Himmel kreisten.
We watched two birds of prey circling high in the sky.
