die  Abrechnung

B2

Estimated CEFR level.

/ˈapˌʁɛçnʊŋ/

🧾 What does 'die Abrechnung' actually mean?

The word die Abrechnung is a feminine noun (recognizable by the suffix -ung) and has several meanings depending on the context:

• Financial Context: Here, die Abrechnung usually refers to a detailed statement of costs, services, or claims. It can be a bill, an invoice, an expense report, a payroll statement, or the final accounting of a project.
  • Example: Die monatliche Abrechnung der Telefonkosten. (The monthly phone bill/statement.)
  • Example: Bitte reichen Sie Ihre Reisekosten zur Abrechnung ein. (Please submit your travel expenses for settlement.)
• Figurative Context (Interpersonal): In a figurative sense, die Abrechnung often means a form of retribution, revenge, or settling a (metaphorical) score. It can also mean a critical confrontation or 'wiping the slate clean'.
  • Example: Der Film war seine persönliche Abrechnung mit der Filmindustrie. (The movie was his personal reckoning with the film industry.)
  • Example: Nach dem Streit kam die Stunde der Abrechnung. (After the argument came the hour of reckoning.)
• Process Context: It can also refer to the process of settling accounts itself.
  • Example: Die Abrechnung der Verkäufe dauert bis zum Abend. (The settlement/accounting of the sales takes until the evening.)

⚠️ Pay attention to the context to understand the correct meaning!

Article rules for der, die, and das

🧐 Grammar in Detail: The Declension of Abrechnung

Die Abrechnung is a feminine noun. Nouns ending in -ung are almost always feminine and take the article die.

Example Sentences for Clarity

1. Ich warte noch auf die Abrechnung für das letzte Quartal. (I am still waiting for the statement/bill for the last quarter. - Financial)
2. Seine Rede war eine scharfe Abrechnung mit der bisherigen Politik. (His speech was a sharp reckoning/critique of the previous policy. - Figurative)
3. Die Erstellung der Nebenkostenabrechnung ist komplex. (Creating the utility bill statement is complex. - Financial, compound noun)
4. Manche sehen Wahlen als Abrechnung mit den Regierenden. (Some see elections as a reckoning with the ruling parties. - Figurative)

💡 How and When to Use 'Abrechnung'

Die Abrechnung is used in various contexts:

• Work & Finance: Very common in business for bills, payslips, cost statements (e.g., Spesenabrechnung - expense report, Nebenkostenabrechnung - utility cost statement, Projektkostenabrechnung - project cost accounting). The related verb is abrechnen.
• Personal Finance: For example, when splitting shared costs in a flatshare (WG).
• Interpersonal Relationships (Figurative): When talking about revenge, retribution, or a critical confrontation (e.g., eine persönliche Abrechnung - a personal score to settle, die Stunde der Abrechnung - the hour of reckoning). This usage is more emotionally charged.

Distinction from similar words:

• Rechnung: Often synonymous in the financial context, but Rechnung usually refers to the document requesting payment (invoice/bill), whereas Abrechnung can also mean the process or a more detailed statement (e.g., over a period).
• Bezahlung: Refers to the act of paying (payment), not the statement of costs.
• Berechnung: Refers to the mathematical process of calculating (calculation).

🧠 Mnemonics for 'die Abrechnung'

Article Mnemonic: Words ending in -ung in German are overwhelmingly feminine. Think of the -ung ending like a suffix that gives birth to feminine nouns – it's almost always die! Like die Rechnung (the bill), die Lösung (the solution)... and thus die Abrechnung.

Meaning Mnemonic: Imagine you 'reckon' (sounds like rechnen) everything 'up' (ab- can mean completion) at the end of a job – that's the financial Abrechnung (statement/billing). Or, you 'reckon' you need to get even with someone – that's the figurative Abrechnung (reckoning/revenge).

🔄 Synonyms & Antonyms

Watch Out for Similar Words

• Berechnung: Refers to calculation (the act of computing numbers), not primarily the financial demand or revenge. Die Berechnung der Statik war kompliziert. (The calculation of the statics was complicated.)

😂 A Little Joke

Kellner zum Gast: "Hier ist Ihre Abrechnung."
Waiter to the guest: "Here is your bill/statement."

Gast: "Danke, aber das ist ja eine Zumutung!"
Guest: "Thanks, but this is an imposition/outrage!"

Kellner: "Entschuldigung, ich bringe Ihnen sofort die richtige Abrechnung!"
Waiter: "Sorry, I'll bring you the correct bill right away!"
(Plays on the double meaning of Abrechnung and the word Zumutung sounding somewhat similar in a stressed situation)

✍️ Poem about Abrechnung

Auf Deutsch:

Am Monatsende, oh wie nett,
liegt sie im Brief, ganz adrett.
Die Abrechnung, mal Freud, mal Leid,
zeigt an, was kostet uns die Zeit.

Mal ist's Gehalt, mal Strom, mal Müll,
mal ist's ganz wenig, mal zu viel.
Doch auch im Zorn, wenn's ungerecht,
kommt die Abrechnung – manchmal schlecht.

In English:

At month's end, oh how very neat,
It lies there in the mail, quite sweet.
The statement, sometimes joy, sometimes pain,
Shows us the cost of time's domain.

Sometimes it's salary, power, or trash,
Sometimes quite little, sometimes a stash.
But also in anger, when things feel unjust,
Comes the reckoning – sometimes like dust.

❓ Riddle Time

Auf Deutsch:

Ich komme oft am Monatsend',
bin mal erfreulich, mal horrend.
Ich liste auf, was man bezahlt,
manchmal werd' ich auch ersehnt, gemalt
als Racheakt, ganz ungeniert.
Wer hat mich jetzt wohl identifiziert?

Lösung: die Abrechnung

In English:

I often arrive at the end of the month,
Sometimes delightful, sometimes quite blunt (horrendous).
I list everything for which one has paid,
Sometimes I'm longed for, portrayed
As an act of revenge, quite unashamedly.
Who has identified me now, maybe?

Solution: die Abrechnung (the statement/bill/reckoning)

🧩 Further Insights

Word Composition:

The word Abrechnung is composed of:

• Prefix ab-: Can signify separation, removal, or completion.
• Stem verb rechnen: to calculate, to reckon.
• Suffix -ung: Forms nouns from verbs, usually feminine, often denoting a process or its result.

Related Verb: abrechnen (to bill, to settle accounts, to get even with someone).