01
der Wal
whale
A very large mammal that lives in the sea.
example
Vom Schiff aus konnten wir in der Ferne einen Wal beobachten.
From the ship, we were able to observe a whale in the distance.
der Wal
whale
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Meanings
Usage tips
False friend
'Der Wal' (the whale) sounds very similar to the English word 'wall'. But 'der Wal' is the large sea animal (whale). A wall in German is 'die Wand' or 'die Mauer'.
EXAMPLE
Im Urlaub haben wir einen riesigen Wal gesehen.
On vacation, we saw a huge whale.
Word formation
The word stem 'Wal-' is used to form other words that have to do with the animal or the sea. Examples are der Walhai (whale shark), das Walross (walrus), or der Walfang (whaling).
EXAMPLE
Der Walgesang kann über hunderte Kilometer gehört werden.
Whale song can be heard over hundreds of kilometers.
Typical verbs
Common verbs used in connection with whales are 'Wale beobachten' (to watch whales), 'Wale schwimmen' (whales swim), or, when an animal is washed onto land, 'ein Wal strandet' (a whale is stranded).
EXAMPLE
An der Küste ist leider ein Wal gestrandet.
Unfortunately, a whale has been stranded on the coast.
Compare with
Wal vs Fisch
fish
'der Fisch' and 'der Wal' both live in water, but they do not belong to the same animal group. A fish breathes with gills and moves with fins. A whale lives in the sea, but it is a mammal. It breathes air and has to come to the water's surface to do so. The words can be confused because whales look like very large fish. But to be precise: a whale is not a fish.
Wal
Im Urlaub sahen wir einen Wal, der kurz aus dem Meer auftauchte.
On vacation, we saw a whale briefly surface from the sea.
Fisch
Im klaren See schwimmt ein kleiner Fisch zwischen den Steinen.
In the clear lake, a small fish is swimming among the stones.
In real life
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