swell
der Wellengang
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swell
The movement of the surface of the water caused by waves, especially at sea. The word also describes how strong this movement is.
Wegen des starken Wellengangs konnte die Fähre den Hafen nicht verlassen.
Because of the heavy swell, the ferry could not leave the harbor.
| gender | masculine der |
|---|---|
| genitive | des Wellenganges |
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | der Wellengang | – |
| accusative | den Wellengang | – |
| dative | dem Wellengang | – |
| genitive | des Wellenganges des Wellengangs | – |
The article changes with the case; it is shown in colour.
'Wellengang' (swell) is made up of 'Welle' (wave) and 'Gang' (movement). The second part describes how the waves move, or how the surface of the water is in motion.
Der Wellengang nahm im Laufe des Nachmittags deutlich zu.
The swell increased significantly over the course of the afternoon.
Common collocations include 'starker Wellengang' (heavy swell), 'hoher Wellengang' (high swell), and 'ruhiger Wellengang' (calm swell). The word most often describes conditions for ships, ferries, or boats.
Bei starkem Wellengang blieb die Besatzung an Bord.
In heavy swell, the crew remained on board.
'Wellengang' (swell) often follows 'bei' (in/with) or 'wegen' (because of). 'Bei' takes the dative, while 'wegen' usually takes the genitive in standard German.
Bei starkem Wellengang sollten Passagiere sitzen bleiben.
In heavy swell, passengers should remain seated.
Wegen des hohen Wellengangs wurde die Überfahrt verschoben.
Because of the high swell, the crossing was postponed.
