verb

trauen

dare · trust

Jemandem oder sich selbst glauben, dass man etwas kann oder dass etwas gut ausgeht.

Definition & meaning

The verb trauen has three primary meanings in German:

To trust: To have confidence in someone or something, or to rely on the honesty or abilities of a person.
To dare: To have the courage to do something or to venture into a risky situation.
To marry (perform the ceremony): To officiate a wedding ceremony, usually referring to the registrar or priest performing the act of joining two people in marriage.

The reflexive form sich trauen is frequently used to mean "to dare" (to have the courage) or, in a specific context, "to get married" (to dare to take the step into marriage).

Grammar & Word origin

Grammar:

trauen is a weak verb.
Past tense: traute
Past participle: getraut
Auxiliary verb: haben
It is often used with the dative case (e.g., Ich traue ihm - I trust him).

Word origin: The word originates from the Old High German trūēn, which is related to the Germanic root treuwaz (meaning "true" or "faithful"). It is etymologically linked to the German word treu , which means loyal or faithful. The evolution of the word highlights the connection between faithfulness/loyalty and the act of trusting or daring.