wortlos
wordless
Without saying a word; silently.
EXAMPLE
Er stand auf und verließ wortlos den Raum.
He stood up and left the room without a word.
wortlos
wordless
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Meanings
Usage tips
Word formation with '-los'
The word consists of 'Wort' (word) and the suffix '-los', which means 'without'. So 'wortlos' (wordless) literally means 'without words'. Many other adjectives are formed this way, e.g., 'hoffnungslos' (hopeless) or 'endlos' (endless).
EXAMPLE
Nach der schlechten Nachricht war er eine Weile einfach nur wortlos.
After the bad news, he was simply wordless for a while.
Adverbial use
'Wortlos' (wordless) is most often used as an adverb to describe how an action is carried out. It then usually stands directly near the verb.
EXAMPLE
Sie drehte sich um und ging wortlos davon.
She turned around and walked away without a word.
Typical collocations
'Wortlos' (wordless) often describes a nonverbal reaction to an emotional or surprising situation. Typical verbs are 'gehen' (to go), 'dastehen' (to stand there), 'zusehen' (to watch), or 'nicken' (to nod).
EXAMPLE
Er konnte nur wortlos zusehen, wie das Auto wegfuhr.
He could only watch wordlessly as the car drove away.
Compare with
wortlos vs stumm
mute / silent
Stumm and wortlos can both describe a reaction without spoken words. Wortlos generally means that someone says nothing, while stumm can also make an unspoken reproach come across through a look or behavior. Use wortlos for simply being unable to speak, and stumm for indirect criticism.
wortlos
Sie reagierte auf seinen Fehler wortlos und verließ den Raum.
She reacted to his mistake without saying a word and left the room.
stumm
Sie sah ihn nach seinem Fehler mit einem stummen Vorwurf an.
After his mistake, she gave him a look of silent reproach.
In real life
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