schwer
heavy, difficult
Schwer (heavy, difficult) is one of those useful German adjectives that carries two everyday meanings at once. It describes weight, as in ein schwerer Koffer (a heavy suitcase), and it describes difficulty, as in eine schwere Prüfung (a hard exam). Context tells you which one is meant.
The conjugation is regular. The comparative is schwerer (heavier, harder) and the superlative is am schwersten (heaviest, hardest). Like most short adjectives, schwer also works as an adverb without changing form: schwer atmen (to breathe heavily).
A common point of confusion is schwer versus schwierig. Both can mean "difficult", but only schwer also means "heavy". Schwierig is limited to difficulty and complication, so eine schwierige Frage (a difficult question) works, while "a heavy suitcase" must use schwer, never schwierig. When you mean weight, always reach for schwer.
Schwer has a third shade of meaning: serious or severe. Ein schwerer Unfall is "a serious accident", and schwer krank means "seriously ill". The phrase es fällt mir schwer means "I find it hard", literally "it falls heavily on me", and is one of the most useful expressions built on this word.
Pronunciation: schwer is one syllable, [ʃveːɐ], roughly "shvair". The "sch" sounds like English "sh", the "w" sounds like a "v", and the "e" is long.
English
heavy, difficult
Positive
schwer
Comparative
schwerer
Superlative
am schwersten
Synonyms
Antonyms
schwer appears in the following vocabulary collections:
Das Buch ist schwer.
The book is heavy.
Predicative adjective follows the verb 'sein'.
Die Tasche ist sehr schwer.
The bag is very heavy.
Adverbs like 'sehr' come before adjectives.
Ist der Koffer schwer?
Is the suitcase heavy?
Yes/no questions begin with the verb.
- What does schwer mean in German?
- Schwer has two main meanings in German: "heavy" (ein schwerer Stein, a heavy stone) and "difficult" (eine schwere Aufgabe, a hard task). It can also mean "serious" or "severe", as in ein schwerer Fehler (a serious mistake).
- What is the difference between schwer and schwierig?
- Both can mean "difficult", but only schwer also means "heavy". Schwierig is limited to difficulty and complexity, so it cannot describe weight. For "a heavy bag" you must use schwer; for "a tricky problem" either word works.
- What is the comparative of schwer?
- The comparative is schwerer (heavier or harder) and the superlative is am schwersten (heaviest or hardest). Both follow the regular pattern, with -er for the comparative and am ___sten for the superlative.
- What does es fällt mir schwer mean?
- Es fällt mir schwer means "I find it hard" or "it is difficult for me". It literally translates as "it falls heavily on me" and is a very common way to express that something is a struggle, as in es fällt mir schwer, früh aufzustehen (I find it hard to get up early).
- How do you pronounce schwer?
- Schwer is one syllable, pronounced [ʃveːɐ], roughly "shvair". The "sch" is an English "sh" sound, the "w" sounds like a "v", and the "e" is long. The final "r" is soft, closer to a vowel than a rolled English "r".