verwickeln
entangle · involve
Es bedeutet, jemanden in eine schwierige Situation oder Aufgabe hineinzuziehen, sodass alles komplizierter wird.
Definition & meaning
verwickeln is a German verb with two closely related meanings:
-
To entangle or tangle something
- To cause threads, cables, hair, or similar things to become tangled.
- Example: Sie verwickelte den Faden. — “She tangled the thread.”
-
To involve or embroil someone in something
- Usually used figuratively, meaning to get someone involved in a complicated, unpleasant, or difficult situation.
- It can also mean to become involved oneself, especially with sich:
- Er verwickelte mich in einen Streit. — “He dragged me into an argument.”
- Sie hat sich in Widersprüche verwickelt. — “She got herself caught up in contradictions.”
The verb often suggests that the involvement makes the situation more complicated or difficult to escape.
Grammar & Word origin
- Infinitive: verwickeln
- Verb type: weak verb
- Past tense: verwickelte
- Past participle: verwickelt
- Auxiliary verb: haben
- Prefix: ver-
- Base verb: wickeln , “to wrap” or “to wind”
The prefix ver- often indicates a change of state or an undesirable result. Thus, verwickeln originally expresses the idea of winding something together until it becomes tangled. It is an inseparable verb, so the prefix remains attached in conjugated forms: ich verwickle, sie verwickelte.
The related noun is die Verwicklung , meaning “entanglement,” “complication,” or “involvement.”
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonyms
- verheddern — “to get tangled up”; more commonly used for physical tangles and often emphasizes accidental entanglement.
- verstricken — “to entangle” or “to implicate”; often has a stronger figurative sense, especially involving guilt, deception, or a difficult situation.
- verwirren — “to confuse” or “to muddle”; focuses more on mental confusion than on being drawn into a situation.
- einbeziehen — “to involve” or “to include”; usually more neutral and does not necessarily suggest a problematic situation.
- hineinziehen — “to drag or draw into”; strongly emphasizes forcing or pulling someone into a situation.
- komplizieren — “to complicate”; describes making a situation more difficult, but not necessarily involving a person.
Antonyms
- entwirren — “to untangle”; the direct opposite for physical or figurative entanglement.
- lösen — “to loosen,” “untie,” or “resolve”; emphasizes freeing something or solving a problem.
- klären — “to clarify” or “resolve”; the opposite of creating confusion or complications.
- vereinfachen — “to simplify”; contrasts with making a situation more complicated.
- ausschließen — “to exclude”; can be the opposite of involving someone in a situation.
Common phrases & collocations
- jemanden in einen Streit verwickeln — to drag someone into an argument
- jemanden in eine Angelegenheit verwickeln — to involve someone in a matter
- in einen Konflikt verwickelt sein — to be involved in a conflict
- in einen Skandal verwickelt sein — to be implicated in a scandal
- sich in Widersprüche verwickeln — to get caught up in contradictions
- Kabel verwickeln — to tangle cables
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Examples
Sie verwickeln sich oft in komplizierte Diskussionen.verb
They often entangle themselves in complicated discussions.
Er verwickelt uns in eine Diskussion.verb
He involves us in a discussion.
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