catty / temperamental
zickig – zickiger – am zickigsten
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catty
Colloquial: quick to become irritated, moody, or deliberately difficult to deal with.
Seit dem Streit ist sie total zickig und lässt niemanden an sich heran.
Ever since the argument, she’s been really catty and won’t let anyone get close to her.
temperamental
Colloquial: unreliable or difficult to operate, especially when referring to technical devices or machines.
Mein alter Drucker ist ziemlich zickig und funktioniert nur, wenn er gerade Lust dazu hat.
My old printer is pretty temperamental and only works when it feels like it.
| basic form | zickig |
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| comparative | zickiger |
| superlative | am zickigsten |
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| nom. | -e | -e | -e | -en |
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| nom. | -er | -e | -es | -en |
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| dat. | -en | -en | -en | -en |
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Add the ending to zickig.
| masc. | fem. | neut. | plural | |
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| nom. | -er | -e | -es | -e |
| acc. | -en | -e | -es | -e |
| dat. | -em | -er | -em | -en |
| gen. | -en | -er | -en | -er |
Add the ending to zickig.
'Zickig' (catty / temperamental) is clearly colloquial and often sounds derogatory or annoyed. In conversation, it expresses a subjective assessment and is therefore especially suitable for personal comments.
Seine zickige Art bei der Arbeit macht die Zusammenarbeit schwierig.
His catty attitude at work makes collaboration difficult.
When referring to people, 'zickig' (catty) is often used with 'sein' (to be), 'reagieren' (to react), or 'sich anstellen' (to make a fuss). It often describes a specific reaction to a situation rather than a person's permanent character.
Sie reagierte zickig, als ich sie auf ihren Fehler hinwies.
She reacted cattily when I pointed out her mistake.
When referring to devices and machines, 'zickig' (temperamental) is usually used with a specific object, such as a printer, camera, or piece of software. It commonly occurs with verbs such as 'funktionieren' (to work), 'laufen' (to run), or 'arbeiten' (to operate).
Die zickige Kamera arbeitet nur bei ausreichendem Licht zuverlässig.
The temperamental camera only operates reliably in sufficient light.
