tragen

Definition & meaning

tragen is a strong German verb with several related meanings:

1. To carry or transport something

   • Sie trägt eine Tasche. — “She is carrying a bag.”
   • It refers to holding or transporting something, usually with the hands, arms, or on the body.

2. To wear clothing, shoes, jewelry, or accessories

   • Er trägt ein blaues Hemd. — “He is wearing a blue shirt.”
   • In this sense, it describes what someone has on their body.

3. To bear or support weight

   • Die Brücke trägt viele Autos. — “The bridge supports many cars.”
   • It can also refer to bearing a physical or abstract burden.

4. To bear responsibility, costs, consequences, or guilt

   • Sie trägt die Verantwortung. — “She bears the responsibility.”
   • Er muss die Kosten tragen. — “He has to bear the costs.”

5. To produce fruit or yield

   • Der Baum trägt viele Äpfel. — “The tree is bearing many apples.”
   • This meaning is mainly used for plants and trees.

6. To bear a name or have a particular feature

   • Die Straße trägt den Namen eines berühmten Dichters. — “The street bears the name of a famous poet.”
   • Sie trägt eine Brille. — “She wears glasses.”

7. To contribute to or cause something, especially in the expression zu etwas beitragen

   • Diese Maßnahme trägt zur Verbesserung bei. — “This measure contributes to the improvement.”
   • Here, the related separable verb is beitragen [?](vocabuo://word/beitragen).

Grammar & Word origin

tragen is an irregular strong verb.

Examples:

• Ich trage — “I carry / wear”
• Du trägst — “You carry / wear”
• Er trägt — “He carries / wears”
• Ich trug — “I carried / wore”
• Ich habe getragen — “I have carried / worn”

The vowel changes from a to ä in the second- and third-person singular present forms: du trägst, er trägt. The past tense changes the vowel to u: trug.

The verb comes from Old High German tragan [?](vocabuo://word/tragan) and is related to English “to drag” and “to draw.” Many German compound verbs are formed with tragen [?](vocabuo://word/tragen), including ertragen [?](vocabuo://word/ertragen) “to endure,” übertragen [?](vocabuo://word/übertragen) “to transfer” or “to broadcast,” and vortragen [?](vocabuo://word/vortragen) “to present” or “to recite.”

Synonyms & antonyms

The appropriate synonym depends on the meaning:

Meaning “to carry”

• heben [?](vocabuo://word/heben) — “to lift”; emphasizes moving something upward rather than transporting it.
• transportieren [?](vocabuo://word/transportieren) — “to transport”; sounds more technical and usually refers to moving something from one place to another.
• schleppen [?](vocabuo://word/schleppen) — “to haul” or “to lug”; suggests that the object is heavy or difficult to carry.

A possible antonym is:

• ablegen [?](vocabuo://word/ablegen) — “to put down” or “to take off,” depending on the context.

Meaning “to wear”

• anziehen [?](vocabuo://word/anziehen) — “to put on”; describes the action of dressing, while tragen describes having the clothing on.
• anhaben [?](vocabuo://word/anhaben) — “to have on”; is close to tragen when referring to clothes.
• bekleidet sein [?](vocabuo://word/bekleidet sein) — “to be dressed”; more formal and descriptive.

The opposite is:

• ausziehen [?](vocabuo://word/ausziehen) — “to take off clothing.”

Meaning “to bear responsibility or a burden”

• verantworten [?](vocabuo://word/verantworten) — “to be responsible for”; focuses specifically on responsibility.
• übernehmen [?](vocabuo://word/übernehmen) — “to assume” or “to take on”; emphasizes accepting a responsibility.
• ertragen [?](vocabuo://word/ertragen) — “to endure” or “to tolerate”; emphasizes withstanding something difficult.

Possible antonyms are:

• ablehnen [?](vocabuo://word/ablehnen) — “to reject” or “to refuse” a responsibility.
• abgeben [?](vocabuo://word/abgeben) — “to hand over” or “to relinquish” responsibility.

Common phrases & collocations

• eine Tasche tragen [?](vocabuo://word/eine Tasche tragen) — to carry a bag
• Kleidung tragen [?](vocabuo://word/Kleidung tragen) — to wear clothes
• eine Brille tragen [?](vocabuo://word/eine Brille tragen) — to wear glasses
• Verantwortung tragen [?](vocabuo://word/Verantwortung tragen) — to bear responsibility
• die Kosten tragen [?](vocabuo://word/die Kosten tragen) — to bear the costs
• die Konsequenzen tragen [?](vocabuo://word/die Konsequenzen tragen) — to face or bear the consequences
• Früchte tragen [?](vocabuo://word/Früchte tragen) — to bear fruit
• zu etwas beitragen [?](vocabuo://word/zu etwas beitragen) — to contribute to something
• etwas mit sich tragen [?](vocabuo://word/etwas mit sich tragen) — to carry something with oneself
• etwas in sich tragen [?](vocabuo://word/etwas in sich tragen) — to contain or carry something within oneself