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 is usually larger and deeper than a Teich. A Teich is small and often artificially created, but it can also have formed naturally. Since the boundaries between small bodies of water are not clear-cut, size, depth, and origin help determine which word to use.
Der Teich am Ortsrand ist flach und wurde für die Fischzucht angelegt.
The pond on the edge of town is shallow and was created for fish farming.
Der See am Ortsrand ist natürlich entstanden und mehrere Meter tief.
The lake on the edge of town formed naturally and is several meters deep.
