German word

taub

Pronunciation

IPA/taʊ̯p/

Meaning

  • adjectivedeaf

Example

Die taube Frau kommuniziert mit Gesten.

The deaf woman uses gestures to communicate.

Illustration for taub (deaf)

More examples

Nach dem Schlag war sein Arm taub.

After the blow, his arm was numb.

Core concept

A silent ear and an unresponsive fingertip share one picture: incoming signals do not register.

Common phrases

  • taub sein

    be deaf

  • für Kritik taub sein

    be deaf to criticism

Similar words

gehörlos: Unable to hear sounds; sometimes used by deaf people to describe themselves.
schwerhörig: Having reduced hearing and difficulty detecting some sounds.
hörgeschädigt: Having a hearing impairment that makes sounds difficult to hear.
hörbehindert: Having difficulty hearing in everyday life because of impaired hearing.

Definition in German

nicht hören können; auch gebraucht für ein taubes Gefühl oder Gefühllosigkeit in einem Körperteil

Word origin

German taub continues Old High German toub through Middle High German toup and is related to English deaf.

Usage tips

  • With body parts, German uses 'taub' for numb, as in 'ein tauber Finger'; English 'deaf' does not normally have this sense.

Other meanings

  • numbadjective

Opposites

  • hörendhearingadjective

Related words

  • Taubheitdeafnessnoun
  • taubstummdeaf-muteadjective
  • taubblinddeafblindadjective

Word lists with this word