Erkennbare

Erkennbare is a form of the German adjective erkennbar, meaning recognizable or perceptible. It is used to describe something that can be identified, distinguished, or perceived given adequate information or context.

Etymology and composition: The adjective erkennbar is built from the verb erkennen (to recognize) plus the suffix -bar, which indicates capability or suitability. The resulting form erkennbar expresses that recognition is possible. The specific inflected form erkennbare appears in positions where the adjective is attributive and must agree with the noun in gender, number, and case.

Usage and declension: Erkennbare typically appears as an attributive adjective after a determiner such as der, die, das or ein, and changes form according to gender and number. For example: der erkennbare Mann (masculine, singular, nominative), die erkennbare Frau (feminine, singular, nominative), das erkennbare Zeichen (neuter, singular, nominative), die erkennbaren Merkmale (plural). Without a determiner or with different cases, other inflected forms such as erkennbare, erkennbaren, erkennbares may occur. In everyday language, erkennbar and its inflections are common in formal and written contexts.

Semantics and related terms: Erkennbare describes what can be identified or distinguished, often implying that recognition is straightforward or supported by evident features. Related terms include erkennbar, sichtbar, offensichtlich, and deutlich, which share the sense of perceptibility or clarity.

Notes: In philosophical or theoretical prose, phrases such as das Erkennbare may appear to denote “that which can be recognized,” though this usage is more specialized and less common in everyday German.