die
Breite
📏 What does "die Breite" mean?
The noun die Breite (feminine) primarily has two meanings:
- Physical dimension: The extent of an object or area measured perpendicular to its length. It describes how wide (breit) something is. This translates to width or breadth.
- Geographic Latitude: The coordinate specifying the north-south position of a point on the Earth's surface (also called Breitengrad - degree of latitude).
🚨 Attention: Do not confuse the noun die Breite with the adjective breit (wide).
Article rules for der, die, and das
-e/-ee → almost always feminine.
There are many -e nouns, many of which are feminine, but there are also some important exceptions.
📐 Grammar of "die Breite" in Detail
"Die Breite" is a feminine noun. Here are the declension tables:
Singular
| Case | Article | Noun |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | die | Breite |
| Genitive | der | Breite |
| Dative | der | Breite |
| Accusative | die | Breite |
Plural
The plural "die Breiten" is mainly used in the geographical context or for different types of widths.
| Case | Article | Noun |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | die | Breiten |
| Genitive | der | Breiten |
| Dative | den | Breiten |
| Accusative | die | Breiten |
💡 Usage Examples
- Die Breite des Tisches beträgt 80 Zentimeter.
(The width of the table is 80 centimeters.) - Berlin liegt auf etwa 52 Grad nördlicher Breite.
(Berlin is located at about 52 degrees north latitude.) - Er argumentierte in aller Breite über das Thema.
(He argued about the topic in great detail / at length.) - Das Schiff überquerte verschiedene Breiten auf seiner Reise.
(The ship crossed different latitudes on its journey.)
🌐 How to use "die Breite"?
- Measurements: Very common for indicating the dimensions of objects, rooms, streets, etc. (e.g., Länge mal Breite - length times width).
- Geography & Navigation: Essential for specifying locations on Earth (often together with die Länge - longitude). We talk about nördlicher Breite (N) (northern latitude) and südlicher Breite (S) (southern latitude).
- Figurative Meaning: Can also mean extensiveness, scope, or detail (e.g., in die Breite gehen = to put on weight, to expand; etwas in aller Breite diskutieren = to discuss something in great detail).
- Comparison: Die Weite (vastness, width) is similar but often emphasizes openness or unlimited space more, whereas die Breite specifically refers to the transverse dimension.
🧠 Mnemonics for "die Breite"
Article Mnemonic: Many nouns derived from adjectives ending in -e are feminine (die). The adjective is breit (wide), so the noun is die Breite.
Meaning Mnemonic: Think of something breit (wide) like a wide road – it has a large Breite (width). For latitude, imagine wide horizontal bands (like belts) around the Earth; these represent the lines of Breite (latitude).
🔄 Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms (similar meaning):
- Weite: (width, vastness) - often interchangeable, sometimes emphasizes openness more.
- Ausdehnung: (extent, dimension) - general term for size.
- Spannweite: (span, range) - often used for wings or bridges.
- (Geografische) Breite: (Geographic) Latitude - specific for the coordinate.
- Ausmaß: (extent, scale) - can refer to size or scope.
Antonyms (opposite meaning):
⚠️ Caution: The adjective breit (wide) is not a synonym for the noun die Breite (width), but describes the quality.
😂 A little Joke
Warum sind Flüsse so faul?
Weil sie immer im Bett bleiben und sich nur in die Breite entwickeln!
Translation:
Why are rivers so lazy?
Because they always stay in bed and only develop in width! (Pun: river bed / sleeping bed; grow wider / put on weight)
📜 Poem about die Breite
Von Nord nach Süd, ein Maß, so fein,
die Breite zieht die Erd' entlang.
Ob schmal der Pfad, ob weit der Schein,
sie misst den Raum, im Weltgesang.
Ein Tisch, ein Fluss, ein Horizont,
was quer sich dehnt, hat seine Spur.
Die Breite wird von uns gekonnt,
gemessen auf der Erdenflur.
Translation:
From North to South, a measure so fine,
The latitude stretches along the Earth.
Whether narrow the path, or wide the shine,
It measures space, in the world's song's birth.
A table, a river, a horizon's view,
Whatever extends across has its trace.
The width/breadth is skillfully by us,
Measured upon the Earth's face.
❓ Riddle Time
Ich messe quer, nicht längs, nicht hoch.
Auf Karten zeig' ich, wo du bist, ob Nord, ob Süd doch.
Manchmal geh' ich in die _, wenn jemand dicker wird gar sehr.
Was bin ich, dieses Maß, sag her?
Translation:
I measure across, not lengthways, not high.
On maps I show where you are, whether North or South nigh.
Sometimes people 'go into me' (idiom: 'in die Breite gehen'), when they get quite fat, oh dear.
What am I, this measure, tell me clear?
Solution: die Breite (width / latitude)
✨ Other Interesting Facts
- Word Formation: Die Breite is a nominalization (Substantivierung) of the adjective breit (wide) by adding the suffix -e.
- Compounds (Wortzusammensetzungen): The word is part of many compound nouns, e.g.:
- Bandbreite (bandwidth - technical, figurative)
- Arbeitsbreite (working width - for machines)
- Breitengrad (degree of latitude - geography)
- Schulterbreite (shoulder width - body measurement)
Summary: is it der, die or das Breite?
The German word "Breite" is always feminine. Therefore, the correct article is exclusively die Breite.