ziehen

Etymology

From Middle High German ziehen, from Old High German ziohan, from Proto-Germanic *teuhaną, from Proto-Indo-European *dewk- (“to pull, lead”). Cognate with Low German tehn, Gothic 𐍄𐌹𐌿𐌷𐌰𐌽 (tiuhan), Middle Dutch tīen, Old English tēon, Old Norse toga, West Frisian tsjen.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtsiːən/, /ˈtsiːn/

• Audio

  (file)

Verb

ziehen (class 2 strong, third-person singular simple present zieht, past tense zog, past participle gezogen, past subjunctive zöge, auxiliary haben or sein)

1. (transitive or intransitive, auxiliary: “haben”) to pull (e.g., a door handle); to drag
2. (transitive, auxiliary: “haben”) to draw (e.g. a weapon); to extract; to puff
3. (transitive, auxiliary: “haben”) to draw (a conclusion, lesson, etc.)
   • 2010, Der Spiegel, issue 25/2010, page 77:

     Es gilt deshalb, die richtigen Lehren aus der Krise zu ziehen, aus den Fehlern der Vergangenheit zu lernen, um die Zukunft zu sichern.

     Therefore it is necessary to draw the right lessons from the crisis, to learn from the mistakes of the past for securing the future.

4. (impersonal, intransitive) to be drafty

   Es zieht. ― It’s drafty.

5. (intransitive, auxiliary: “sein”) to move; to migrate

   Ich ziehe nach Hamburg, aber mein Bruder zieht in eine andere Stadt.

   I'm moving to Hamburg, but my brother is moving to another city.

6. (intransitive, auxiliary: “sein”) to roam; to head
7. (reflexive, auxiliary: “haben”) to stretch; to warp

Further reading

• ziehen in Duden online

Etymology

From Old High German ziohan, from Proto-Germanic *teuhaną. Cognates: see German ziehen.

Verb

ziehen

1. to pull