das Zehntel
tenth
One of ten equal parts of a whole; the tenth part or the fraction 1/10.
EXAMPLE
Ein Zehntel der Befragten gab an, mit dem Service unzufrieden zu sein.
One tenth of the respondents said they were dissatisfied with the service.
das Zehntel
tenth
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Meanings
das Zehntel
tenth of a second
A tenth of a second; a very short unit of time often used in sports to measure close results.
EXAMPLE
Der Sprinter gewann das Rennen mit nur einem Zehntel Vorsprung.
The sprinter won the race with a lead of only one tenth of a second.
Usage tips
Word structure
The word is derived from the ordinal number 'zehnte' (tenth). The ending '-el' is used in German to form fractional numbers as nouns (e.g. Drittel, Viertel, Achtel).
EXAMPLE
Für das Rezept benötigst du nur ein Zehntel Liter Milch.
For the recipe, you only need one tenth of a liter of milk.
Watch the capitalization
Although 'Zehntel' describes a number, it is a noun and is therefore always capitalized. This is a common mistake among learners.
EXAMPLE
Er hat nur ein Zehntel der Aufgaben richtig gelöst.
He solved only one tenth of the tasks correctly.
Sentence structure with genitive
When 'Zehntel' describes a part of a group, it is usually followed by a noun in the genitive. The construction with 'von' + dative is more colloquial.
EXAMPLE
Ein Zehntel der Weltbevölkerung hat keinen Zugang zu sauberem Wasser.
One tenth of the world's population has no access to clean water.
Sports context
In a sports context, 'Zehntel' almost always means 'Zehntelsekunde' (tenth of a second). The word 'Sekunde' (second) is often omitted because it is clear from the context.
EXAMPLE
Die Läuferin war nur zwei Zehntel langsamer als die Siegerin.
The runner was only two tenths slower than the winner.
In real life
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