gen
German, preposition
gen is spelled G-E-N (3 letters) and appears 16 times per million words in written German, the 4,781st most frequent German word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Gen is a German preposition meaning “in the direction; to; towards (a place or time)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). With a capital, Gen is a different word: “gene”. The German Wiktionary defines it as “auf etwas hin”.
What does gen mean in English?
preposition
- 1
datedin the direction; to; towards (a place or time)
gen Norden
noun
- 1
neutergene
suffix
- 1
neuterused to make diminutives (especially in the 18th century)
suffix
- 1
A producer of something
- 2
producing something
Source: English Wiktionary, German section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How German dictionaries define it
noun: 1. Sequenz auf der DNA, die mit einer bestimmten Basenabfolge für eine Ribonukleinsäure codiert
abbreviation: 1. General (Dienstgrad der Bundeswehr) 2. das Buch Genesis (1. Buch Mose)
abbreviation: 1. genannt 2. genealogisch 3. genetisch 4. genehmigt
abbreviation: 1. Genehmigung 2. General(…) 3. Generation(s…) 4. Generator
preposition: 1. auf etwas hin
suffix: 1. nachgestelltes Wortbildungselement mit der Bedeutung: hervorbringend oder hervorgebracht 2. nachgestelltes Wortbildungselement mit der Bedeutung: eine Sache betreffend, einer Sache angemessen
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 gen
- Gens genitive
- Gene plural
- Genen dative definite plural
Source: English Wiktionary and German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
English words that translate to gen
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is gen in German?
gen appears 16 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).