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Illustration of the B1 German word “erfolglos”, which translates to “unsuccessful”. Close-up of a slumped fox in front of a huge glowing target whose every arrow has thudded flat into the dirt far below the bullseye, dust still hanging.
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erfolglos

unsuccessful

/ɛɐ̯ˈfɔlkloːs/

Forms

Comparative Forms

Positive erfolglos
Komparativ erfolgloser
Superlativ am erfolglosesten

Examples — erfolglos in a sentence

Die Suche nach dem Schlüssel blieb erfolglos.

The search for the key remained unsuccessful.

Er unternahm mehrere erfolglose Versuche.

He made several unsuccessful attempts.

How to remember it

ERFOLG-LOS" - 'Erfolg' means success, 'los' means without. So, without success: unsuccessful.

More B1 words

Illustration of the B1 German word “gründen”, which translates to “to found, to establish”. Close-up of a beaver planting a huge glowing cornerstone into fresh earth, a bright little building already sprouting up from that single founding block.
gründen

/ˈɡʁʏndn̩/

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to found, to establish

Principal parts

gründen, gründete, hat gegründet

ich gründe
du gründest
er/sie/es gründet
wir gründen
ihr gründet
sie/Sie gründen

Examples

Sie wollen ein neues Start-up-Unternehmen gründen.

They want to found a new start-up company.

Wir haben diesen Verein vor vielen Jahren gegründet.

We founded this club many years ago.

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Illustration of the B1 German word “die Heimatstadt”, which translates to “home town”. A small fox stands at the crest of a hill gazing down at a warm cluster of cottages with smoking chimneys nestled in the valley below, tail curled around its paws.
die Heimatstadt

/ˈhaɪ̯matˌʃtat/

home town

Examples

Er kehrte nach Jahren in seine Heimatstadt zurück.

He returned to his hometown after years.

Meine Heimatstadt ist klein, aber sehr schön.

My hometown is small, but very beautiful.

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Illustration of the B1 German word “hoffnungslos”, which translates to “hopeless”. A soggy little mole sits in a puddle under a broken umbrella, bottom lip trembling theatrically, as one last raindrop plops squarely onto his nose.
hoffnungslos

/ˈhɔfnʊŋsloːs/

hopeless

Comparative Forms

Positive hoffnungslos
Komparativ hoffnungsloser
Superlativ am hoffnungslosesten

Examples

Die Situation schien anfangs hoffnungslos, aber wir fanden eine Lösung.

The situation seemed hopeless at first, but we found a solution.

Er fühlt sich momentan sehr hoffnungslos wegen seiner Arbeit.

He feels very hopeless about his work at the moment.

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Illustration of the B1 German word “inspirieren”, which translates to “to inspire”. A person breathing in stardust, which then turns into vibrant, flying origami birds taking flight from their fingertips.
inspirieren

/ɪnspiˈʁiːʁən/

to inspire

Principal parts

inspirieren, inspirierte, hat inspiriert

ich inspiriere
du inspirierst
er/sie/es inspiriert
wir inspirieren
ihr inspiriert
sie/Sie inspirieren

Examples

Ihre Geschichte hat mich sehr inspiriert.

Her story inspired me greatly.

Die Natur kann Künstler immer wieder inspirieren.

Nature can always inspire artists.

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Illustration of the B1 German word “die Jugend”, which translates to “youth, adolescence”. Close-up of a bounding young fox kit mid-leap through a huge glowing spring meadow, bright dandelion seeds and fresh green light bursting all around its jump.
die Jugend

/ˈjuːɡn̩t/

youth, adolescence

Examples

Er verbringt seine Jugend auf dem Land.

He spends his youth in the countryside.

Die Jugend von heute ist sehr umweltbewusst.

Today's youth is very environmentally conscious.

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Illustration of the B1 German word “-los”, which translates to “suffix meaning 'without'”. A sock puppet peels off its sock and holds up the completely bare hand, now utterly without its covering.
-los

/ˌloːs/

suffix meaning 'without'

Examples

Das WLAN ist hier komplett kostenlos.

The Wi-Fi here is completely free.

Er fühlte sich machtlos in dieser Situation.

He felt powerless in this situation.

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gründen — to found, to establish

gründenHeimatstadthoffnungslosinspirierenJugend-losAll German word pages

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