01
schulden
to owe
To have the obligation to pay back a borrowed amount of money to someone.
example
Ich schulde dir noch 20 Euro für die Kinokarten.
I still owe you 20 euros for the movie tickets.
schulden
to owe
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Meanings
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Usage tips
Word family
The verb 'schulden' (to owe) is directly connected with the noun 'die Schuld' (debt/guilt, singular) and 'die Schulden' (debts, plural). When you have debts, you owe someone something.
EXAMPLE
Er hat hohe Schulden bei der Bank.
He has large debts with the bank.
Dative and accusative object
The verb 'schulden' (to owe) almost always needs two objects. The person to whom one owes something is in the dative. The thing one owes is in the accusative.
EXAMPLE
Der Chef schuldet seinen Mitarbeitern (Dativ) eine Erklärung (Akkusativ).
The boss owes his employees (dative) an explanation (accusative).
Fixed construction
The phrase 'etwas ist jemandem/etwas geschuldet' (something is due to someone/something) is a fixed, passive-like construction. It means 'something is the result of something' or 'something is caused by something.' The cause is in the dative.
EXAMPLE
Der Erfolg des Projekts ist der guten Teamarbeit geschuldet.
The project's success is due to the good teamwork.
Typical collocations
When it is about money, 'schulden' (to owe) is often combined with concrete nouns like 'Geld' (money), 'einen Betrag' (an amount), 'die Miete' (the rent), or a currency.
EXAMPLE
Sie schuldet ihrer Freundin noch 50 Euro.
She still owes her friend 50 euros.
Typical collocations
For non-material obligations, typical combinations are 'eine Entschuldigung schulden' (to owe an apology), 'eine Erklärung schulden' (to owe an explanation), 'Dank schulden' (to owe thanks), or 'Respekt schulden' (to owe respect).
EXAMPLE
Für deine Hilfe schulde ich dir großen Dank.
For your help, I owe you great thanks.
Register
The construction 'geschuldet sein' (to be due to) is mainly used in written language and in formal contexts. It often sounds somewhat more formal and detached.
EXAMPLE
Die hohe Fehlerquote war den knappen Fristen geschuldet.
The high error rate was due to the tight deadlines.
Compare with
schulden vs bezahlen
to pay
'bezahlen' and 'schulden' are connected, but they describe different moments. 'schulden' means that you still have to pay money back. So the debt still exists. 'bezahlen' means that you give the money and thereby take care of the bill or debt. You can confuse the words because both often appear in situations involving money and bills. The important point is: if I owe you money, I have not paid yet. If I pay, the debt gets smaller or is gone.
schulden
Meine Nachbarin schuldet mir noch zwanzig Euro für den Einkauf.
My neighbor still owes me twenty euros for the groceries.
bezahlen
Der Gast bezahlt das Zimmer an der Rezeption.
The guest pays for the room at reception.
In real life
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