pond
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pond
A small body of standing water that is smaller than a lake. Ponds can have formed naturally or been created artificially, for example as a garden pond or for fish farming.
Im Park schwimmen Enten auf dem kleinen Teich.
Ducks are swimming on the small pond in the park.
'Teich' (pond) is often used in compound words to specify the type or function. Common examples are 'Gartenteich' (garden pond), 'Fischteich' (fish pond), and 'Ententeich' (duck pond).
Mein Nachbar hat einen wunderschönen Gartenteich mit Seerosen und Goldfischen.
My neighbor has a beautiful garden pond with water lilies and goldfish.
Pay attention to the difference in prepositions: 'am Teich' means that you are at the edge of the water. 'Im Teich' means that you are directly in the water.
Die Kinder saßen am Teich und warfen Steine ins Wasser.
The children were sitting by the pond and throwing stones into the water.
A typical verb in this context is 'einen Teich anlegen' (to create a pond). It means to dig and design an artificial pond.
Die Familie möchte nächstes Jahr im Garten einen kleinen Teich anlegen.
The family would like to create a small pond in the garden next year.
lake
'der See' and 'der Teich' are both standing bodies of water. The most important difference is size. A 'See' is larger and usually feels like a natural place for swimming, walking, or boats. A 'Teich' is smaller and can also be artificially created, for example in a garden or for fish farming. The words can be confused when a body of water is not very large. A simple rule is: in a garden or park, people often say 'Teich'; for a larger body of water in the landscape, they are more likely to say 'See'.
Im Garten meiner Nachbarin schwimmen Fische in einem kleinen Teich.
Fish are swimming in a small pond in my neighbor's garden.
Die Eltern suchen für den Ausflug einen See mit einem kleinen Strand.
The parents are looking for a lake with a small beach for the outing.