das Vorliegen, –

Definition & meaning

vorliegen is a separable German verb meaning “to be present,” “to be available,” “to exist,” or “to be on hand.” It is especially common in formal, administrative, academic, medical, and legal language.

1. To be available or present

   • Die erforderlichen Unterlagen liegen vor.
     “The required documents are available.”
   • Die Ergebnisse liegen nun vor.
     “The results are now available.”

2. To be the case / to exist as a situation or condition

   • Es liegt ein Missverständnis vor.
     “There is a misunderstanding.”
   • Bei ihm liegt eine Verletzung vor.
     “He has an injury.” / “There is an injury in his case.”

3. To be before someone for examination or consideration

   • Der Bericht liegt dem Ausschuss vor.
     “The report is before the committee.”
   • Der Antrag liegt der Behörde vor.
     “The application has been submitted to and is available to the authority.”

The verb is often used with es liegt … vor to state that a particular condition or circumstance exists.

Grammar & Word origin

vorliegen consists of:

• vor — “before,” “in front of,” or “available for consideration”
• liegen — “to lie”

It is a separable verb:

• Infinitive: vorliegen
• Present tense: Die Daten liegen vor.
• Simple past: Die Daten lagen vor.
• Perfect: Die Daten haben vorgelegen.
• Third-person singular: er/sie/es liegt vor

In a main clause, vor moves to the end:

• Die Informationen liegen noch nicht vor.
  “The information is not available yet.”

The nominalized form das Vorliegen means “the presence,” “the existence,” or “the occurrence” of something, usually in formal language:

• das Vorliegen einer Straftat — “the existence of a criminal offense”

vorliegen should not be confused with vorlegen [?](vocabuo://word/vorlegen), which means “to present,” “to submit,” or “to produce.”
Compare:

• Die Unterlagen liegen vor. — “The documents are available.”
• Sie legt die Unterlagen vor. — “She presents/submits the documents.”

Synonyms & antonyms

Synonyms

• vorhanden sein [?](vocabuo://word/vorhanden%20sein) — “to be present” or “to exist”; a general synonym, less specifically associated with documents or official information.
• bestehen [?](vocabuo://word/bestehen) — “to exist” or “to be the case”; often used for conditions, circumstances, or problems.
• existieren [?](vocabuo://word/existieren) — “to exist”; broader and more neutral, while vorliegen often suggests that something is available for inspection or consideration.
• verfügbar sein [?](vocabuo://word/verfügbar%20sein) — “to be available”; emphasizes accessibility rather than simply being present.
• vorhanden sein [?](vocabuo://word/vorhanden%20sein) — “to be on hand”; commonly used for objects, resources, or required materials.

Antonyms

• fehlen [?](vocabuo://word/fehlen) — “to be missing” or “to be absent”; the most common opposite when referring to documents, data, or required information.
• nicht vorhanden sein [?](vocabuo://word/nicht%20vorhanden%20sein) — “not to be present” or “not to exist.”
• ausstehen [?](vocabuo://word/ausstehen) — “to be outstanding” or “to still be pending”; appropriate when something has not yet been delivered or completed.
• zurückgehalten werden [?](vocabuo://word/zurückgehalten%20werden) — “to be withheld”; describes something that exists but is not made available.

Common phrases & collocations

• Die Unterlagen liegen vor. [?](vocabuo://word/Die%20Unterlagen%20liegen%20vor) — “The documents are available.”
• Die Ergebnisse liegen vor. [?](vocabuo://word/Die%20Ergebnisse%20liegen%20vor) — “The results are available.”
• Es liegt ein Problem vor. [?](vocabuo://word/Es%20liegt%20ein%20Problem%20vor) — “There is a problem.”
• Es liegt kein Grund vor. [?](vocabuo://word/Es%20liegt%20kein%20Grund%20vor) — “There is no reason.”
• Die Voraussetzungen liegen vor. [?](vocabuo://word/Die%20Voraussetzungen%20liegen%20vor) — “The prerequisites are met.”
• noch nicht vorliegen [?](vocabuo://word/noch%20nicht%20vorliegen) — “not to be available yet” or “not to have been received yet.”
• dem Gericht vorliegen [?](vocabuo://word/dem%20Gericht%20vorliegen) — “to be before the court” or “to have been submitted to the court.”