noun

die Schwelle, -n

threshold

Definition & meaning

Schwelle has several related meanings:

A threshold or doorstep: the raised strip at the bottom of a doorway, or the entrance boundary between rooms or spaces.
Sie blieb auf der Schwelle stehen. — “She stopped in the doorway.”
A sill or raised boundary: a raised strip or bar, for example at a doorway or along a railway track.
A limit or threshold: the point at which something begins, changes, or becomes noticeable. This can refer to a physical or measurable level, such as a sound or pain threshold, or to an abstract limit, such as the point at which someone feels ready to act.

Grammar & Word origin

Schwelle is a feminine noun: die Schwelle. Its plural is die Schwellen.

It is an old Germanic word for a beam or piece of wood placed at the base of a doorway. It is historically related to schwellen , “to swell” or “to rise,” reflecting the raised form of a traditional threshold.

Synonyms & antonyms

Synonyms depend on the meaning:

Türschwelle means specifically a doorway threshold; Schwelle can also refer to a figurative or measurable limit.
Grenze means a boundary or limit more generally, not necessarily a point marking entry or the onset of a change.
Grenzwert means a specified numerical limit, such as a legal or technical threshold.

There is no universal antonym. In the physical doorway sense, Schwelle has no direct opposite. In the sense of a limit, Unterschreitung can describe falling below a threshold, while Überschreitung describes going beyond it.

Common phrases & collocations

auf der Schwelle stehen — to stand on the threshold; figuratively, to be on the verge of something.
eine Schwelle überschreiten — to cross a threshold, literally or figuratively.
die Hemmschwelle — an inhibition threshold; the psychological barrier that makes someone hesitate.
die Reizschwelle — the stimulus threshold, the minimum intensity needed to trigger a response.