Hörensagen

== German == === Etymology === From Middle High German hœrsagen (14th c.). Equivalent to hören (“to hear”) +‎ sagen (“to say”). Compare English hearsay, which is of similar age. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ˈhøːrənˌzaːɡən/, [ˈhøː.ʁənˌzaː.ɡŋ̍], [ˈhøː.ɐn-], [ˈhøːɐ̯n-], [ˈhœɐ̯n-], [-ɡən] === Noun === Hörensagen n (strong, genitive Hörensagens, no plural) hearsay; report; that which one has heard from others ==== Usage notes ==== The noun is used chiefly in the prepositional phrase vom Hörensagen (“by hearsay”), less commonly also durchs Hörensagen. Freer use is not impossible, as shown above; however, in many contexts where English hearsay is used, the German word would not be idiomatic. For example, Don't believe hearsay! should rather be rendered as Glaub doch keine Gerüchte!, or kein Gerede!, or the like. ==== Declension ==== ==== Related terms ==== weitersagen === Further reading === “Hörensagen” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache “Hörensagen” in Duden online