abtragen
German, verb
abtragen is spelled A-B-T-R-A-G-E-N (8 letters) and appears about once in every 1 million words in written German, the 49,558th most frequent German word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Abtragen is a German verb meaning “to carry off, to remove, denude” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). With a capital, Abtragen is a different word: “gerund of abtragen”. The German Wiktionary defines it as “schichtweise entfernen”.
What does abtragen mean in English?
verb
- 1
to carry off, to remove, denude
Die Arbeiter trugen den Schutt ab.
- 2
to take down, tear down
Die alte Fabrik wird nächstes Jahr abgetragen.
- 3
to clear up, clear away
Wir haben das Mahl jetzt beendet. Das Hausmädchen kann nun abtragen.
- 4
to degrade, wear down
Ich kaufe erst eine neue Hose, wenn ich diese hier abgetragen habe.
- 5
to pay off
Sie trägt ihren Studienkredit monatlich ab.
noun
- 1
neutergerund of abtragen
Source: English Wiktionary, German section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How German dictionaries define it
verb: 1. schichtweise entfernen 2. Kleidung so lange benutzen, bis sie kaputt ist 3. bezahlen 4. das Geschirr vom Tisch räumen
The definition in the German Wiktionary, in German.
Source: German Wiktionary, dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of abtragen
- trägt ab present singular third-person
- trug ab past
- abgetragen participle past
- trüge ab past subjunctive
- haben auxiliary
- 6 strong
- abtragend participle present
- abzutragen infinitive infinitive-zu
- trage ab first-person indicative present
- tragen ab first-person indicative plural
- trägst ab indicative present second-person
- tragt ab indicative plural present
- tragest ab second-person singular subjunctive
- traget ab plural second-person subjunctive
- trugen ab first-person indicative plural
- trügen ab first-person formal plural
- trugst ab indicative preterite second-person
- trugt ab indicative plural preterite
Source: English Wiktionary and German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
English words that translate to abtragen
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is abtragen in German?
abtragen appears about once in every 1 million words in written German.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).