Empfängern

Empfängern is the dative plural form of the German noun Empfänger, meaning recipients. The base noun Empfänger denotes a person or entity that receives something, such as mail, packages, information, or signals. In grammar, Empfängern appears when the recipients are the indirect object of a sentence in the dative case, typically after prepositions or verbs that govern the dative. The nominative and accusative plural is Empfänger, while the dative plural is den Empfängern.

Examples of usage include: Die Briefe wurden den Empfängern zugestellt. Wir danken den Empfängern für ihre Teilnahme. In these sentences, Empfängern is used with the definite article in the dative plural. Without an article, the form remains Empfängern, but needs appropriate grammatical support to indicate case and number.

In addition to referring to people who receive something, Empfänger also designates devices that receive signals, such as radio or television receivers. In those contexts, the plural dative form remains den Empfängern when used with a determiner, or simply Empfängern in a larger phrase following a dative construction.

Etymology: Empfänger derives from empfangen (to receive) with the agentive suffix -er; the plural dative ending -n is added in standard German noun inflection.

Notes: Empfängern is not used as a standalone nominative plural form; it functions as the dative plural form of Empfänger. In everyday writing, the term appears primarily in formal or technical contexts, such as official correspondence, logistics, or telecommunications.