English Translation
I usually walk.
Hi, the translation says “I usually walk.” . Shouldn’t it be “run”
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“Laufen” is one of those confusing verbs in German that can translate to different things in English depending on context. It can either mean “to walk” (usually “gehen”) or “to run” (usually “rennen”).
I remember watching Lord of the Rings in German many years ago, and I was greatly confused when Gandalf turned to the hobbits and yelled “Lauf!”, which I at first took to mean “walk!”. But of course he was actually telling them to run.
Generally, I hear “laufen” used to mean “to walk”, and so I think clozemaster’s suggested translation here is probably good. But I have also been surprised here and there, as with Gandalf’s confusing command. The important thing is to consider the context. If you’re being chased by a giant flame-covered Balrog from the depths of Moria, then “laufen” probably does not mean “to walk”.
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“laufen” basically means to “use your feet”.
In this context specifically “… as opposed to other means of transportation”.
An alternative way to say it is “Ich gehe normalerweise zu Fuß.”
Yes, depending on the context it can mean “walk” or “run”. But if you’re being chased, “Use your feet!!!” is a pretty clear advice. The german translation of “Run, Forrest, run!” is “Lauf, Forrest, lauf!”.
You could say that “laufen” is the umbrella term that expresses movement by making steps, and “gehen” and “rennen” are more specific, restricting it to slow or fast movement.
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Lol, thanks for the quick reply and a heads up. Nice to know I’m not the only that gets confused.
Rick
“Lauf schnell!” is an interesting command, as it, in a practical sense, tells somebody to run.
However, it expresses it in a slightly old-fashioned, everyday way, possibly towards children, or people, who are not particularly fit.
I’d suggest that rennen could be more associated with an athletic, sporty, competitive (or frantic) way of moving fast. If you “run slowly”, then, again, in German, people may more likely say “langsam laufen” (not “langsam rennen”).
It becomes even more interesting when you consider nouns with the mentioned words laufen / rennen.
For “rennen” (run), there is “das Rennen” - which is “the race (competition)”.
A 100 metre race could be called 100 Meter Lauf, or 100 Meter Rennen in German, pretty much interchangeably (whilst the first may imply that you are just running it, but not directly competing against others. whilst the second clearly is a race).
In general, though, Lauf may suggest longer distance running.
Strangely, you would not say “der Renner” for a person who runs (that would be “der Läufer”, short or long distance).
However, there is a use of “Renner” in a casual idiom (“das ist der Renner”) which means, something is popular, a hit, or a success, but that only applies to things or activities, not to people.
And if you were to call somebody a “Geher” then it would most likely apply so the (Olympic) race-walker, as it would be a very uncommon noun in other contexts.
Hope I managed to confuse you a bit more. I have written this without checking a dictionary btw.
It is probably one of those collections of “almost the same” words where one has to develop a “feel” / sense how the selection fits in the respective context, in terms of intent and style, as there is not necessarily an exact, objective way to distinguish.
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