Reading · C2 · Text 25

Fliegen

58 words1 min read100% known at C2

Die bekannteste Fliegen-Art ist die Stuben-Fliege.
The most well-known species of fly is the housefly.
Einige Fliegen werden nur so groß wie eine Bleistift-Spitze.
Some flies are only as big as the tip of a pencil.
Andere sind sie groß wie ein Finger-Nagel.
Others are as large as a fingernail.
Die meisten Fliegen werden nur einige Tage oder höchstens ein paar Wochen alt.
Most flies live only a few days or at most a couple of weeks.
Sie fressen kleine Teile von anderen Tieren oder Pflanzen.
They eat small parts of other animals or plants.
Die Stiche können manchmal ganz schön weh tun und jucken.
The bites can sometimes hurt quite a bit and itch.

18 words above C2

Stuben-Fliege← die Stubenfliege

housefly plural: Stubenfliegen

Bleistift-Spitze← die Bleistiftspitze

pencil tip plural: Bleistiftspitzen

Finger-Nagel← der Fingernagel

fingernail plural: Fingernägel C2/ˈfɪŋərˌnaːɡəl/

Stiche← der Stich

sting, bite plural: Stiche sting, prick, stitch, stab; trick; engraving B2/ʃtɪç/

jucken

to itch regular verb: juckt, juckte, hat gejuckt to itch (feel itchy); to itch (cause an itchy feeling); to itch (scratch as to relieve an itch) C1/ˈjʊkən/

fressen

to eat (of animals) strong verb: frisst, fraß, hat gefressen to eat; to feed on; to devour; to stuff oneself; to gorge oneself; to eat like a pig; to eat away (e.g. metal) B1/ˈfʁɛsn̩/

weh tun← wehtun

to hurt irregular: tut weh, tat weh, hat wehgetan [with dative] to hurt; to hurt (to be painful) A2[ˈveːtuːn]

bekannteste← bekannt

most well-known superlative form known, familiar A2/bəˈkant/

einige← einig

some, several indefinite pronoun some, a few, plenty; united; agreed, in agreement A1/ˈaɪ̯nɪç/

groß

big, large comparative: größer, superlative: am größten big, large, large-scale; great, grand; tall A1/ɡʁoːs/

kleine← klein

small declined form small, little, wee (in physical size or extent); small, little, young (not grown up); insignificant (of little influence or means; of people) A1/klaɪ̯n/

andere← ander

other indefinite pronoun See anderer.; second C2/ˈʔandər/

meisten← meist

most superlative form mostly, most often, usually A2/maɪ̯st/

Tage← der Tag

days plural of Tag day (a 24-hour period); day (the period from midnight to the following midnight); day (the rotational period of a planet, moon or any celestial body… A1/taːk/

Wochen← die Woche

weeks plural of Woche week (period of seven days counting from Monday to Sunday, or from Sunday to Saturday); week (any period of seven consecutive days); week; weekdays… A1/ˈvɔxə/

Tieren← das Tier

animals dative plural of Tier animal (see usage notes below); A person who has a quality thought of as animalistic, such as ferocity, strength, hairiness, etc.; hind (female red… A1/tiːr/

Pflanzen← die Pflanze

plants plural of Pflanze plant A2/ˈpflan(t)sə/

manchmal

sometimes A1/ˈmançmaːl/

Grammar in this text

Comparison of adjectives (superlative)

Die bekannteste Fliegen-Art ist die Stuben-Fliege.

The superlative form of the adjective 'bekannt' is used to indicate that something is the most well-known. It is formed by adding '-ste' to the stem and is declined according to gender, number, and case.

Indefinite pronouns (einige, andere, die meisten)

Einige Fliegen werden nur so groß wie eine Bleistift-Spitze.

Indefinite pronouns like 'einige' (some), 'andere' (others), and 'die meisten' (most) are used to refer to non-specific quantities. They are declined like adjectives and agree with the noun they modify.

Modal adverbs (nur, höchstens, manchmal, ganz schön)

Die meisten Fliegen werden nur einige Tage oder höchstens ein paar Wochen alt.

Adverbs such as 'nur' (only), 'höchstens' (at most), 'manchmal' (sometimes), and 'ganz schön' (quite) modify the meaning of the sentence, indicating limitation, degree, or frequency.

Verb conjugation for plural subjects

Sie fressen kleine Teile von anderen Tieren oder Pflanzen.

The verb 'fressen' is conjugated in the third person plural to agree with the subject 'sie' (they). This is a regular plural conjugation pattern.

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Text from Fliegen — Klexikon, used under CC BY-SA 4.0. See sources.

Translation, glossary and grammar notes are machine-generated and inherit the same licence.