01
die Sekunde
second
The base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI); the sixtieth part of a minute.
example
Eine Minute besteht aus sechzig Sekunden.
A minute consists of sixty seconds.
die Sekunde
second
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Meanings
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Usage tips
Typical usage
In the meaning of 'kurzer Moment' (brief moment), 'Sekunde' (second) is very often used in spoken language to ask someone to be patient for a short moment.
EXAMPLE
Gib mir nur eine Sekunde, dann helfe ich dir.
Give me just a second, then I'll help you.
Fixed expression
The expression 'in letzter Sekunde' (at the last second) means that something happens just in time, shortly before it would have been too late.
EXAMPLE
Er hat den Zug in letzter Sekunde erreicht.
He caught the train at the last second.
Context clue
The meaning as a unit of angle is very specific. You can recognize it because it almost always appears together with the words 'Grad' (degree) and 'Minute' (minute) in a scientific or geographic context.
EXAMPLE
Die Koordinaten des Schiffes wurden mit Grad, Minute und Sekunde angegeben.
The ship's coordinates were given in degrees, minutes, and seconds.
Compare with
Sekunde vs Minute
minute
'die Minute' and 'die Sekunde' are both units of time and can also generally mean a very short time. The clear difference is their length: one minute has sixty seconds, so a second is much shorter. They can be confused when you only want to say that something takes a short time. But in exact time expressions, you need to be careful. 'Minute' fits something that is short but still noticeably lasts for a bit. 'Sekunde' fits something very fast or a tiny moment.
Sekunde
Für eine Sekunde war das Licht aus, dann ging es wieder an.
For one second, the light was off; then it came back on.
Minute
Der Bus kommt in fünf Minuten, also müssen wir nicht rennen.
The bus comes in five minutes, so we don't have to run.
In real life
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