01
verdauen
to digest
To break down food chemically and mechanically in the stomach and intestines so that the body can absorb the nutrients.
example
Fettiges Essen ist oft schwer zu verdauen.
Fatty food is often hard to digest.
verdauen
to digest
Checking...
Loading your saved state.
Meanings
01 / 02
Usage tips
Inseparable verb
'Verdauen' (to digest) is an inseparable verb. The prefix 'ver-' is firmly attached to the stem and is never separated in a sentence.
EXAMPLE
Er hat die große Mahlzeit nur langsam verdaut.
He digested the large meal only slowly.
Typical adverbs
In the literal sense, 'verdauen' (to digest) is often combined with the adverbs 'leicht' (easily) or 'schwer' (with difficulty / hard) to describe how well food is tolerated.
EXAMPLE
Salat ist normalerweise leicht zu verdauen.
Salad is normally easy to digest.
Context clue
You can recognize the figurative meaning from the object of the sentence. If it is an abstract thing such as a 'Nachricht' (piece of news), a 'Schock' (shock), a 'Niederlage' (defeat), or an 'Enttäuschung' (disappointment), mental processing is meant.
EXAMPLE
Er muss erst einmal die Trennung von seiner Freundin verdauen.
First he has to digest the breakup with his girlfriend.
Compare with
verdauen vs aufnehmen
to record / take in
'aufnehmen' and 'verdauen' can both have to do with the body and with information, but they do not mean the same thing. With food, digestion comes first: the body breaks down the food. After that, it can absorb nutrients. So 'aufnehmen' is more about something getting into the body or into the mind. 'verdauen' means that something is processed. In a figurative sense, you can take in a piece of news, meaning hear or understand it, but you may first have to digest it if it is difficult or unpleasant. The words are easy to confuse because both describe internal processes.
verdauen
Nach der schlechten Nachricht braucht er Zeit, um alles zu verdauen.
After the bad news, he needs time to digest everything.
aufnehmen
Beim Lesen nimmt sie viele neue Informationen auf.
When reading, she takes in a lot of new information.
In real life
Loading video examples...