Entgleiten

Entgleiten is a German verb that means to slip away from someone’s grasp, to escape, or to be forgotten or missed. It is commonly used for both tangible and intangible objects, such as opportunities, thoughts, memories, or chances, and usually conveys a sense of something slipping out of reach unexpectedly or too late.

Etymology and grammar: the word is formed from the prefix ent- and gleiten (to glide). It is an intransitive verb and can take a dative object in the sense of “to slip away from someone.” Typical constructions include die Gelegenheit ist mir entglitten (the opportunity has slipped away from me) or Mir entgleitet der Gedanke (the thought slips away from me). The verb’s conjugation is irregular: ich entgleite, du entgleitest, er entgleitet; in the preterite it is entglitt, and the past participle is entglitten, used with sein in the perfect tense (ist entglitten).

Usage and nuance: entgleiten emphasizes an abrupt or uncontrollable departure from grasp or awareness, rather than deliberate loss. It is common in both spoken and written German and can refer to concrete losses (a missed chance) or cognitive or perceptual lapses (a thought or memory fleeting).

Examples: Die Gelegenheit ist mir entglitten. Mir entglitt der Gedanke, bevor ich ihn ausformulieren konnte. Wie schnell entgleitet einem die Zeit.

See also: related terms include entkommen (to escape), versäumen (to miss), and entfallen (to fall away, to be forgotten). The expression often appears in formal or literary contexts, and is widely documented in German dictionaries such as Duden.