to layer / grade
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to layer
To arrange or shape something in steps or levels. The term is used especially often for haircuts in which the hair is cut to different lengths to create more volume or shape.
Ich lasse mir meine langen Haare beim Friseur immer leicht stufen.
I always have my long hair lightly layered at the hairdresser's.
to grade
To divide or classify something according to a scale or system. This often applies to salaries, rates, or quality levels.
Die Beiträge für die Versicherung werden nach dem Einkommen der Mitglieder gestuft.
The insurance contributions are graded according to the members' income.
The verb 'stufen' (to layer/grade) is derived from the noun 'die Stufe' (step, level, degree). To 'stufen' something therefore means to divide or arrange it into steps or levels.
Die Terrassen des Gartens sind schön gestuft.
The garden terraces are beautifully tiered.
The context makes the meaning clear: if it is about 'Haare' (hair) or 'Frisur' (hairstyle), it means cutting in layers. If it is about 'Preise' (prices), 'Gehälter' (salaries), or 'Tarife' (rates), it means dividing according to a scale.
Die Versicherung stuft ihre Tarife nach dem Alter der Kunden.
The insurance company grades its rates according to the customers' age.
When talking about your own haircut, the construction with 'lassen' (to have something done) is very typical: 'sich die Haare stufen lassen' (to have one's hair layered). The person whose hair is being cut is in the dative.
Ich lasse mir die Haare immer stufen, damit sie mehr Volumen haben.
I always have my hair layered so that it has more volume.
In the meaning 'to classify', 'stufen' (to grade) is often used in the passive and with the preposition 'nach' (according to). This indicates the criterion for the classification.
Die Gehälter werden nach Berufserfahrung gestuft.
The salaries are graded according to professional experience.
to stagger / tier
Both stufen and staffeln describe dividing something according to specific criteria. With stufen, the focus is on assigning something to a scale or category. Staffeln places more emphasis on distributing quantities such as prices or salaries across successive levels.
Der Betrieb stuft die Gehälter nach Qualifikation in fünf Gruppen.
The company grades salaries according to qualifications into five groups.
Der Betrieb staffelt die Gehälter so, dass sie mit jeder Qualifikation steigen.
The company tiers salaries so that they increase with each qualification.
