basteln
German, verb
basteln is spelled B-A-S-T-E-L-N (7 letters) and appears 7.4 times per million words in written German, the 9,010th most frequent German word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Basteln is a German verb meaning “to perform handicrafts or DIY, to build, to craft (especially something from paper, fabric, and related materials, by cutting, folding…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). With a capital, Basteln is a different word: “gerund of basteln”. The German Wiktionary defines it as “sich mit kleinen Handwerksarbeiten (zumeist aus Papier, Pappe oder einem anderen Material) aus Liebhaberei…”.
What does basteln mean in English?
verb
- 1
to perform handicrafts or DIY, to build, to craft (especially something from paper, fabric, and related materials, by cutting, folding, gluing, etc., e.g. such objects as kites, lanterns, calendars, greeting cards),
- 2
to tinker (with), to work (on) (in an attempt to fix, mend or improve it)
noun
- 1
neutergerund of basteln
Source: English Wiktionary, German section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How German dictionaries define it
verb: 1. sich mit kleinen Handwerksarbeiten (zumeist aus Papier, Pappe oder einem anderen Material) aus Liebhaberei beschäftigen 2. etwas als Hobby durch kleinere Handwerksarbeiten herstellen 3. kleinere handwerkliche oder technische Arbeiten an etwas vornehmen, um es zu verbessern, es zu reparieren oder umzugestalten 4. an etwas arbeiten, etwas umgestalten, um es zu verbessern
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 basteln
- bastelt present singular third-person
- bastelte past
- gebastelt participle past
- haben auxiliary
- bastelnd participle present
- bastle first-person indicative present
- bastele first-person indicative present
- bastel first-person indicative present
- bastelst indicative present second-person
- bastelest second-person singular subjunctive
- bastlest second-person singular subjunctive
- bastelet plural second-person subjunctive
- bastlet plural second-person subjunctive
- bastelten first-person indicative plural
- basteltest indicative preterite second-person
- basteltet indicative plural preterite
- bastle! imperative singular
- bastel! imperative singular
Source: English Wiktionary and German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
English words that translate to basteln
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is basteln in German?
basteln appears 7.4 times per million words in written German.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).