to have an accident
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to have an accident
To suffer an accident in which one is injured or killed. Often refers to traffic, workplace, or leisure accidents.
Auf der Autobahn ist gestern Abend ein LKW-Fahrer tödlich verunglückt.
A truck driver had a fatal accident on the highway yesterday evening.
The verb 'verunglücken' (to have an accident) is derived from the noun 'das Unglück' (accident, misfortune). The prefix 'ver-' turns it into a verb that describes the process of suffering an accident.
Ein Unglück kommt selten allein.
Misfortunes never come singly.
Since 'verunglücken' (to have an accident) describes a sudden, uncontrollable change of state, the perfect tense is always formed with the auxiliary verb 'sein' (to be). So you say 'er ist verunglückt' (he has had an accident / he was in an accident).
Die Bergsteigerin ist gestern in den Alpen verunglückt.
The mountaineer had an accident in the Alps yesterday.
The verb is often made more precise by adverbs that describe the outcome of the accident. The most common are 'tödlich verunglücken' (to die in an accident) and 'schwer verunglücken' (to be seriously injured in an accident).
Bei dem Zugunglück sind mehrere Menschen schwer verunglückt.
Several people were seriously injured in the train accident.
to crash
Both words can apply to a serious aircraft accident. Abstürzen specifically describes the plane falling uncontrollably from a height. Verunglücken more generally means that someone has an accident resulting in injuries or death.
Der Pilot verunglückte bei diesem Flugunfall tödlich.
The pilot was killed in this accident.
Das Kleinflugzeug stürzte in den Bergen ab.
The small plane crashed in the mountains.
