Abgleiten

Abgleiten is a German verb and, in some uses, a noun (das Abgleiten). It describes the act of slipping off or sliding away from a surface, position, or attachment, and can be used literally as well as figuratively. The word combines the prefix ab- with gleiten (to glide), indicating movement away from a contact point or reference.

In literal use, abgleiten covers situations where something loses grip or adherence and slides away. Examples include a climber who loses a foothold and abgleitet from a ledge, or a tool that slips from a hand and slides off a table. In technical contexts, it can describe parts that lose contact or stability and move along an adjacent surface, such as a component abgleiten from its seating under certain conditions.

In figurative language, abgleiten frequently refers to drifting away from a plan, a topic, or a course of action. For instance, a discussion can abgleiten into subtopics, or a project can abgleiten from its original goals. The construction is common in both written and spoken German, and is often used to convey a gradual or unintended departure from an intended state.

Grammatically, abgleiten is a separable verb in German; present tense forms separate the prefix (er gleitet ab) and the past participle is abgeglitten, typically used with a helping verb in perfect tenses (er ist abgeglitten). The noun form das Abgleiten is used when referring to the process itself.