Ausgedehnte

Ausgedehnte is a German adjective meaning extensive, expansive, or broadly spread. It is used to describe physical areas, features, or phenomena that cover a large geographical space or are widely distributed. The word is formed with the prefix aus- (out, up) and gedehnt (stretched), conveying the idea of something stretched out over a wide area.

Declension and usage: As an attributive adjective, ausgedehnte changes its ending according to gender, number, and case of the noun it accompanies. Examples include die ausgedehnte Fläche (feminine singular nominative/accusative), das ausgedehnte Gebiet (neuter singular), der ausgedehnte Wald (masculine singular). Plural forms include die ausgedehnten Flächen, die ausgedehnten Wälder, and so on. In pronunciation and style it commonly appears in geographical, ecological, urban-planning, and climatological texts to emphasize spatial extent rather than quality or intensity.

Contexts and nuance: Ausgedehnte specifically signals broad spatial scale and wide distribution. It is often preferred over terms like groß or weitläufig when the emphasis is on extent across larger tracts of land or spaces, rather than on size alone. It can be used in descriptive prose as well as in scientific writing.

Examples: ausgedehnte Wälder, ausgedehnte Küstenlinien, ein ausgedehntes Netz von Straßen, ein ausgedehntes Ballungsgebiet, ausgedehnte Feuchtgebiete. The related predicative form is ausgedehnt: Die Fläche ist ausgedehnt. The term can be contrasted with synonyms such as weitläufig or großflächig, which carry similar but slightly different nuances.

See also: German adjective declension, geography terminology, ecological description.