umhauen
to knock down
Informal: to knock someone to the ground with a blow or shove.
EXAMPLE
Mit einem kräftigen Faustschlag haute er seinen Gegner um.
He knocked his opponent down with a powerful punch.
umhauen
to knock down / overwhelm / chop down
umhauen – haute um – hat umgehauen
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Meanings
umhauen
to overwhelm
Informal: to impress someone greatly or overwhelm them emotionally.
EXAMPLE
Die Nachricht von seinem plötzlichen Tod hat mich völlig umgehauen.
The news of his sudden death completely overwhelmed me.
umhauen
to chop down
To fell a tree by striking it with an axe.
EXAMPLE
Er haute den kleinen Baum mit einer Axt um.
He chopped down the small tree with an axe.
umhauen
to knock out
Informal: to weaken someone physically so much that they have to lie down or can no longer carry on with their normal activities.
EXAMPLE
Die Grippe hat mich für eine ganze Woche umgehauen.
The flu knocked me out for a whole week.
Forms
Forms adapted from the German Wiktionary entry umhauen, by Wiktionary contributors, licence CC BY-SA 4.0.
Present
| ich | haue um |
|---|---|
| du | haust um |
| er/sie/es | haut um |
| wir | hauen um |
| ihr | haut um |
| sie | hauen um |
Simple past
| ich | haute um hieb um |
|---|---|
| du | hautest um hiebst um |
| er/sie/es | haute um hieb um |
| wir | hauten um hieben um |
| ihr | hautet um hiebt um |
| sie | hauten um hieben um |
Perfect
with haben
| ich | habe umgehauen |
|---|---|
| du | hast umgehauen |
| er/sie/es | hat umgehauen |
| wir | haben umgehauen |
| ihr | habt umgehauen |
| sie | haben umgehauen |
Commands
| du | hau um! haue um! |
|---|---|
| ihr | haut um! |
| Sie | hauen Sie um! |
Past perfect
| ich | hatte umgehauen |
|---|---|
| du | hattest umgehauen |
| er/sie/es | hatte umgehauen |
| wir | hatten umgehauen |
| ihr | hattet umgehauen |
| sie | hatten umgehauen |
Future
| ich | werde umhauen |
|---|---|
| du | wirst umhauen |
| er/sie/es | wird umhauen |
| wir | werden umhauen |
| ihr | werdet umhauen |
| sie | werden umhauen |
Subjunctive I
| ich | haue um |
|---|---|
| du | hauest um |
| er/sie/es | haue um |
| wir | hauen um |
| ihr | hauet um |
| sie | hauen um |
Used for reported speech.
Subjunctive II
| ich | haute um hiebe um |
|---|---|
| du | hautest um hiebest um |
| er/sie/es | haute um hiebe um |
| wir | hauten um hieben um |
| ihr | hautet um hiebet um |
| sie | hauten um hieben um |
Used for wishes and “would”.
Other forms
| infinitive | umhauen |
|---|---|
| with zu | umzuhauen |
| present participle | umhauend |
| past participle | umgehauen |
Usage tips
Separable verb
'Umhauen' (to knock down / overwhelm / chop down) is a separable verb. In a main clause, 'um' comes at the end of the clause; in a subordinate clause, the verb stays together. In the infinitive with 'zu', 'zu' goes between the prefix and the verb.
EXAMPLE
Der Boxer haute seinen Gegner in der ersten Runde um.
The boxer knocked his opponent down in the first round.
Alle sahen, dass der Boxer seinen Gegner umhaute.
Everyone saw that the boxer knocked his opponent down.
Sie versuchte, den schweren Gegner umzuhauen.
She tried to knock down the heavy opponent.
Informal language
The senses of 'umhauen' (to knock down / overwhelm / knock out) referring to knocking someone over, impressing someone greatly, and weakening someone physically are informal. 'Das haut mich um!' (That blows me away!) is a typical spontaneous exclamation of amazement.
EXAMPLE
Du hast im Lotto gewonnen? Das haut mich echt um!
You won the lottery? That really blows me away!
Ein Glas Wein wird dich schon nicht umhauen.
One glass of wine isn't going to knock you out.
Typical collocations
When it means knocking someone over, 'umhauen' (to knock down) usually takes a person as its accusative object. Common expressions include 'jemanden mit einem Schlag umhauen' (to knock someone down with one blow) and 'jemanden zu Boden schlagen/stoßen' (to knock/push someone to the ground).
EXAMPLE
Der Torwart haute den Angreifer mit einer heftigen Bewegung um.
The goalkeeper knocked the attacker down with a forceful movement.
Strong impact
When describing a strong emotional impact, the subject of 'umhauen' (to overwhelm) is often a piece of news, an event, or an experience. Intensifiers such as 'total' (totally), 'völlig' (completely), and 'wirklich' (really) are often used.
EXAMPLE
Der Ausblick vom Gipfel hat uns total umgehauen.
The view from the summit totally overwhelmed us.
Felling a tree
In the sense of felling, 'umhauen' (to chop down) typically takes 'Baum' (tree) or 'Stamm' (trunk) as its accusative object. Tools such as 'Axt' (axe) or 'Beil' (hatchet) point to this meaning in context.
EXAMPLE
Im Winter hauten die Waldarbeiter mehrere alte Fichten um.
In winter, the forestry workers chopped down several old spruce trees.
Illness as the cause
When referring to physical weakness, an illness or another physical problem is often the subject of 'umhauen' (to knock out). The person affected is then usually in the accusative case.
EXAMPLE
Eine schwere Erkältung hat meinen Bruder völlig umgehauen.
A bad cold completely knocked my brother out.
In real life
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