das  Gemeinwesen

C1

Estimated CEFR level.

/ɡəˈmaɪnvɛzn̩/

🤝 What does 'das Gemeinwesen' mean?

Das Gemeinwesen (neuter gender) refers to an organized community of people living in a specific area, connected by common interests, rules, institutions, or a political order. It's a concept similar to community, commonwealth, or polity. It can operate on different levels:

• Local level: A Gemeinde (municipality), town, or city as an organizational unit (e.g., das kommunale Gemeinwesen - the municipal community/polity).
• Higher level: A state, society, or political entity as a whole (e.g., das staatliche Gemeinwesen - the state/polity, das Wohl des Gemeinwesens - the common good/welfare of the community).

The term emphasizes coexistence and shared responsibility within a structure. It's often a more formal or abstract term than Gemeinschaft (community in a more social/emotional sense).

Article rules for der, die, and das

🧐 Grammar and Declension of Gemeinwesen

Das Gemeinwesen is a neuter noun. Its declension is as follows:

Singular

Plural

The plural form die Gemeinwesen exists but is less common than the singular. It's used when referring to multiple specific communities or state entities.

📝 Example Sentences

1. Das Wohl des Gemeinwesens steht über den Interessen Einzelner.
   (The welfare of the community/commonwealth ranks above individual interests.)
2. Die Städte und Gemeinden bilden die Grundlage unseres föderalen Gemeinwesens.
   (The cities and municipalities form the basis of our federal polity/system.)
3. Ehrenamtliches Engagement stärkt das soziale Gefüge im Gemeinwesen.
   (Voluntary work strengthens the social fabric within the community.)
4. Verschiedene europäische Gemeinwesen standen vor ähnlichen Herausforderungen.
   (Various European polities/communities faced similar challenges.)

🗣️ How is 'Gemeinwesen' used?

Das Gemeinwesen is primarily used in formal, political, sociological, or legal contexts.

• Context: Discussions about public order (öffentliche Ordnung), administration (Verwaltung), social structures (soziale Strukturen), civic duties (Bürgerpflichten), state organization (Staatsorganisation).
• Distinction: While Gemeinschaft often emphasizes emotional or social bonds (e.g., Dorfgemeinschaft - village community, Interessengemeinschaft - community of interest), Gemeinwesen highlights the organized, structural, and often political dimension. A city is a Gemeinwesen (structurally) but can host many different Gemeinschaften (socially).
• Typical Phrases: zum Wohle des Gemeinwesens (for the good of the community/commonwealth), kommunales Gemeinwesen (municipal community/polity), staatliches Gemeinwesen (state/polity), Dienst am Gemeinwesen (service to the community).

It's not a word typically used in everyday conversation but rather belongs to specialized language or writing.

🧠 Mnemonics and Memory Aids

For the article 'das': Think of das Wesen (the being, creature, essence). A Gemeinwesen is like a collective 'being' or entity. Many German nouns ending in '-wesen' are neuter ('das'), like das Lebewesen (living being), das Unwesen (nuisance, mischief), das Staatswesen (polity).

For the meaning: Imagine all people acting 'gemein' (in the sense of commonly or jointly) forming one large 'Wesen' (entity/structure) – the organized community, das Gemeinwesen.

↔️ Synonyms & Antonyms

⚠️ Similar but different words:

• Gemeinschaft: Emphasizes social bonds and shared interests more than structure.
• Allgemeinheit: Refers to the general public, everybody.

😄 A Little Joke

Fragt der Bürgermeister einen Bürger: „Tragen Sie gerne zum Wohl des Gemeinwesens bei?“
Sagt der Bürger: „Ja, klar! Ich zahle meine Steuern und beschwere mich regelmäßig über alles – das hält die Verwaltung auf Trab!“

(The mayor asks a citizen: "Do you like contributing to the welfare of the community?"
The citizen replies: "Sure! I pay my taxes and complain regularly about everything – that keeps the administration on its toes!")

📜 A Short Poem

Das Gemeinwesen, groß und klein,
soll für alle Heimat sein.
Mit Regeln, Rechten, Pflicht und Rat,
vom Dorf bis hin zum großen Staat.
Ein jeder trägt ein Stück dazu,
für Frieden, Wohlstand, Glück und Ruh'.

(The community/commonwealth, large and small,
should be a home for one and all.
With rules, rights, duty, and advice,
from village small to state of size.
Each person plays a little part,
for peace, prosperity, quiet heart.)

🧩 Little Riddle

Ich bin kein Mensch, doch voller Leben,
von Regeln und Struktur umgeben.
Mal bin ich Stadt, mal bin ich Land,
gehalten von gemeinsamer Hand.

Was bin ich?
(I am not a person, yet full of life,
surrounded by rules and structure rife.
Sometimes I'm a city, sometimes a state,
held together by a common fate.

What am I?)

Solution: Das Gemeinwesen (the community/commonwealth/polity)

💡 Other Information

Word Composition (Wortzusammensetzung):

Das Gemeinwesen is composed of:

• gemein: Here meaning 'common', 'public', 'general' (not the negative meaning 'mean' or 'nasty'). It derives from Old High German 'gimeini' (common, shared).
• Wesen: Refers to a form of existence, an entity, a nature, or a structure (as in Staatswesen - polity, Lebewesen - living being).

Together, it describes a 'common form of existence' or a 'public structure/entity'.