Saying less than everything
A flat claim can sound arrogant or careless. Abtönung (toning down) softens it: you signal that a word is not quite exact, that something is a tendency rather than a rule, or that a number is approximate. German has hedges for every register, and choosing the wrong level is more noticeable than leaving the hedge out.
One claim, toned down
Das Konzept ist veraltet.
The concept is outdated.
A verdict.
Das Konzept ist in gewisser Weise veraltet.
The concept is outdated in some respects.
The verdict stands, but with room to talk.
Three jobs a hedge can do
This word is not quite right
sozusagen, quasi and gewissermaßen mark a word as an image or an approximation, like English so to speak or as it were.
Sie ist sozusagen die gute Seele der Firma.
She's the heart and soul of the company, so to speak.
Das Projekt ist quasi fertig, es fehlt nur noch die Abnahme.
The project is pretty much done, it just needs signing off.
A tendency, not a rule
tendenziell, eher, weitgehend and im Wesentlichen scale the claim down from always to mostly.
Jüngere Kunden kaufen tendenziell häufiger online.
Younger customers tend to buy online more often.
Die Ergebnisse stimmen weitgehend mit der Prognose überein.
The results largely match the forecast.
In principle, but
im Grunde (genommen), an sich and eigentlich grant the basic point and prepare a restriction, which often follows with aber.
Im Grunde genommen hast du recht, aber der Zeitpunkt ist schlecht.
Basically you're right, but the timing is bad.
Die Idee ist an sich gut, nur zu teuer.
The idea itself is good, just too expensive.
Eigentlich wollte ich heute früher gehen.
I was meant to leave early today.
Implied: but it won't happen.
Choosing the level
Hedges by register
| Casual | Neutral | Formal |
|---|---|---|
| irgendwie, so | sozusagen, quasi | gewissermaßen, in gewisser Weise |
| mehr oder weniger | eher, meistens | tendenziell, weitgehend, im Wesentlichen |
| eigentlich schon | im Grunde, an sich | grundsätzlich, prinzipiell |
Numbers have their own hedges, and they are more precise than about: rund and etwa mean roughly, knapp means a little less, gut means a little more, and colloquial an die means close to.
Die Fahrt hat knapp drei Stunden gedauert.
The drive took just under three hours.
Wir haben gut zwei Stunden gewartet.
We waited a good two hours.
Es waren an die hundert Leute da.
There were close to a hundred people there.
