German word

erst

Pronunciation

IPA/eːɐ̯st/

Meaning

  • adverbonly

Example

Sie ist erst zehn Jahre alt.

She is only ten years old.

Illustration for erst (only)

More examples

Ich habe erst vor kurzem angefangen, Deutsch zu lernen.

I only recently started learning German.

Core concept

The first reached point on a scale, with attention drawn to how little or how late it is.

Common phrases

  • erst vor kurzem

    only recently

  • erst heute

    only today

Similar words

schon: Shows that something is already true by a given time.
noch: Shows that a state or action is still continuing.
gerade: Shows that something is happening exactly now or at that moment.
zuerst: Shows that an action or state occurs first in a sequence.

Definition in German

Eine Beschränkung oder Minimierung ausdrückt und häufig vor Zahlen zur Bedeutung 'nur' gebraucht wird

Word origin

Erst is an inherited Germanic word from Old High German erist, related to 'first', with later extensions to limited quantity and delayed occurrence.

Usage tips

  • 'Erst' can mean 'first' in contexts such as 'erst essen, dann arbeiten', but 'zuerst' is often the clearer choice for an ordering sequence.

Other meanings

  • not untiladverb
  • firstadverb

Opposites

Word lists with this word