die
Gewalttat
📜 What Exactly is a Gewalttat?
The word die Gewalttat (feminine) refers to an act involving the use of physical or psychological violence against a person or object. It signifies a serious incident that often has legal consequences under criminal law.
It is composed of Gewalt (violence) and Tat (act, deed). Since die Tat is feminine, die Gewalttat is also feminine. This is the only correct article.
⚠️ A Gewalttat always implies the use of force or harm and carries a negative connotation.
Article rules for der, die, and das
Wisdom, power, rules → mostly feminine.
🧐 Grammar Deep Dive: die Gewalttat
The noun "Gewalttat" is feminine. The article is "die". Here are the declension tables:
Singular Declension
| Case | Article | Noun |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | die | Gewalttat |
| Genitive | der | Gewalttat |
| Dative | der | Gewalttat |
| Accusative | die | Gewalttat |
Plural Declension
| Case | Article | Noun |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | die | Gewalttaten |
| Genitive | der | Gewalttaten |
| Dative | den | Gewalttaten |
| Accusative | die | Gewalttaten |
Example Sentences ✍️
- Die Polizei untersucht die jüngste Gewalttat im Stadtpark.
(The police are investigating the most recent act of violence in the city park.) - Der Täter wurde wegen mehrerer Gewalttaten verurteilt.
(The perpetrator was convicted of several acts of violence.) - Die Nachricht von der brutalen Gewalttat erschütterte die Gemeinde.
(The news of the brutal act of violence shook the community.) - Prävention von Gewalttaten ist eine wichtige gesellschaftliche Aufgabe.
(Prevention of acts of violence is an important societal task.)
🗣️ When and How to Use 'Gewalttat'?
"Gewalttat" is primarily used in formal contexts, especially in news reports, police statements, legal texts, and social science discussions. It emphasizes the aspect of violence being applied.
- Distinction from "Verbrechen"/"Straftat" (crime/offense): While every Gewalttat is often also a Verbrechen or Straftat, not every crime is an act of violence (e.g., fraud, theft without violence). "Gewalttat" specifically highlights the element of physical or psychological violence.
- Context: One speaks of a Gewalttat in cases of assault, battery, homicide, but also severe psychological coercion or threats.
- Intensity: The word implies a certain severity of the act. Minor scuffles are less likely to be called a "Gewalttat", even if they technically involve violence.
🧠 Mnemonics and Memory Aids
Article Mnemonic: Remember die Tat (the deed/act). A Tat is feminine, so an act involving Gewalt (violence) + Tat (act) is also feminine: die Gewalttat.
Meaning Mnemonic: Visualize someone committing a Tat (an act) using Gewalt (violence). This image of an active deed involving violence helps cement the meaning: an act of violence.
↔️ Opposites and Similarities: Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms (Similar Meaning)
- Gewaltverbrechen: (Violent crime) Very similar, but emphasizes the criminal nature more strongly.
- Übergriff: (Assault, attack, encroachment) Can be an act of violence, but often less severe or more specific (e.g., sexueller Übergriff - sexual assault).
- Aggressionsakt: (Act of aggression) Describes the action from a psychological perspective.
- Gewalthandlung: (Act of violence) Very direct and synonymous.
Antonyms (Opposite Meaning)
- Friedenshandlung / Friedenstat: (Act of peace) An action that promotes peace.
- Hilfeleistung: (Assistance, aid) The opposite of causing harm.
- Wohltat: (Good deed, benefaction) A kind, helpful act.
- Freundlichkeit / Geste der Güte: (Kindness / Gesture of kindness) Actions of positive social interaction.
🚨 Be aware: Words like "Auseinandersetzung" (confrontation, dispute) or "Konflikt" (conflict) describe tensions but do not necessarily involve a Gewalttat.
😂 A Little Joke
Warum hat der Dieb nie eine Gewalttat begangen?
Er wollte nicht handgreiflich werden, er bevorzugte Fingerfertigkeit! 😉
(Why did the thief never commit an act of violence?
He didn't want to get 'hands-on' (handgreiflich werden), he preferred sleight of hand (Fingerfertigkeit)!) 😉
✒️ Poem about the Consequences
Ein Schatten fällt, die Luft wird kalt,
Wo eben noch Geborgenheit gewallt.
Die Gewalttat, jäh und blind,
Hinterlässt Wunden, die tief sind.
Ein Riss im Netz, das Leben hält,
Ein Schrei, der durch die Stille gellt.
Heilung braucht Zeit, braucht Mut und Kraft,
Nachdem die Dunkelheit gerafft.
(A shadow falls, the air turns cold,
Where just before, security took hold.
The act of violence, abrupt and blind,
Leaves wounds behind, the deepest kind.
A tear in the net that holds life fast,
A scream that through the silence passed.
Healing takes time, needs courage, might,
After the darkness took its flight.)
❓ Little Riddle
Ich bin eine Handlung, dunkel und schwer,
Gesetz und Moral verletze ich sehr.
Mit Kraft und mit Zwang werd' ich oft vollbracht,
Und bringe viel Leid über Tag und Nacht.
Was bin ich?
(I am an action, dark and grave,
Law and morality I deprave.
With force and coercion, I'm often done,
Bringing much sorrow under the sun.
What am I?)
(Answer: die Gewalttat / an act of violence)
🌐 Other Interesting Aspects
Word Composition
The word "Gewalttat" is a compound noun, formed from:
The combination precisely describes an "act involving violence".
Legal Context
In German criminal law (Strafrecht), while the term "Gewalttat" itself is not explicitly legally defined, 'violence' (Gewalt) is a central element in many criminal offenses (e.g., § 240 StGB Coercion, § 249 StGB Robbery, § 223 ff. StGB Bodily Harm).
📝 Summary: is it der, die or das Gewalttat?
The word 'Gewalttat' is feminine. The correct article is die: die Gewalttat (the act of violence), die Gewalttaten (the acts of violence).