schnurren
German, verb
schnurren is spelled S-C-H-N-U-R-R-E-N (9 letters) and appears about once in every 1 million words in written German, the 50,363rd most frequent German word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Schnurren is a German verb meaning “to purr (produce a vibrating, whirring sound, especially when satisfied)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). With a capital, Schnurren is a different word: “purr”. The German Wiktionary defines it as “ein gleichmäßiges, ratterndes, klapperndes, summendes Geräusch von sich geben”.
What does schnurren mean in English?
verb
- 1
to purr (produce a vibrating, whirring sound, especially when satisfied)
Unsere Katze schnurrt immer, wenn sie merkt, dass ihr Fressen vorbereitet wird.
- 2
to produce a “healthy” sound that indicates good function
noun
- 1
neuterpurr
- 2
neutera hum: the sound made by the smooth running of a mechanical system, like a well-maintained chain of a running bicycle
noun
- 1
feminineplural of Schnurre
Source: English Wiktionary, German section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How German dictionaries define it
verb: 1. ein gleichmäßiges, ratterndes, klapperndes, summendes Geräusch von sich geben 2. einen charakteristischen, rasselnden Laut von sich geben, der Wohlbehagen oder Stress signalisiert 3. reden, daherreden
noun: 1. schnurrendes Geräusch
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 schnurren
- schnurrt present singular third-person
- schnurrte past
- geschnurrt participle past
- haben auxiliary
- schnurrend participle present
- schnurre first-person indicative present
- schnurrst indicative present second-person
- schnurrest second-person singular subjunctive
- schnurret plural second-person subjunctive
- schnurrten first-person indicative plural
- schnurrtest indicative preterite second-person
- schnurrtet indicative plural preterite
- schnurr imperative second-person singular
- habe geschnurrt first-person indicative multiword-construction
- haben geschnurrt first-person indicative multiword-construction
- schnurre! imperative singular
- schnurrt! imperative plural
- geschnurrt haben active infinitive perfect
Source: English Wiktionary and German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
English words that translate to schnurren
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is schnurren in German?
schnurren 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).