to comfort
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to comfort
To help a sad or unhappy person ease their pain or sorrow through encouragement, sympathy, or gestures.
Nach der Niederlage versuchte der Trainer, die weinenden Spieler zu trösten.
After the defeat, the coach tried to comfort the crying players.
The verb 'trösten' (to comfort) is closely connected to the noun 'der Trost' (comfort, consolation). When you comfort someone, you give comfort.
Seine Worte waren ein großer Trost für mich.
His words were a great comfort to me.
The structure of the sentence shows who is being comforted. 'Jemanden trösten' (to comfort someone) means helping another person. 'Sich trösten' (to comfort oneself) means helping yourself deal with sadness.
Die Mutter tröstet ihr weinendes Kind.
The mother comforts her crying child.
When you comfort another person, that person appears as the direct object in the accusative. The sentence pattern is: subject comforts accusative object.
Ihre beste Freundin rief an, um sie zu trösten.
Her best friend called to comfort her.
When you comfort yourself, the verb is used reflexively ('sich trösten') and is often combined with the preposition 'mit' + dative to name the source of comfort.
Sie tröstete sich mit dem Gedanken, dass sie es zumindest versucht hatte.
She consoled herself with the thought that she had at least tried.
to calm
'beruhigen' and 'trösten' can both help when someone is emotionally unwell. 'beruhigen' fits especially when someone is upset, anxious, or angry and should become calm again. 'trösten' fits more when someone is sad, grieving, or has experienced a loss. Learners may confuse the words because you often help with similar words. The difference is the person's state: with unrest or agitation, you are more likely to say 'beruhigen'; with sadness, 'trösten' is more likely.
Nach der schlechten Nachricht tröstet Mehmet seine Schwester.
After the bad news, Mehmet comforts his sister.
Ich beruhigte meine Kollegin, weil sie vor dem wichtigen Gespräch sehr nervös war.
I calmed my colleague because she was very nervous before the important conversation.