Geschiedene

Geschiedene is a German adjective form and, in certain uses, a noun. As an adjective, geschiedene describes someone who is legally divorced. It inflects like a regular weak declension adjective: for example, a woman is “eine geschiedene Frau,” a man is “ein geschiedener Mann,” and a neutral object would be “ein geschiedenes Kind.” The form geschiedene is the feminine singular dative or nominative form in some constructions, but the typical attributive form with feminine nouns is “eine geschiedene …”.

As a noun, Geschiedene (capitalized) refers to a divorced person or, more broadly, to divorced people as a social group. The singular forms include der Geschiedene (male) or die Geschiedene (female), although the plural die Geschiedenen is common for the group regardless of gender. In statistical, sociological, or biographical contexts, the noun is used to denote individuals by their marital status rather than as an attribute of a person.

Etymologically, geschiedene derives from the verb scheiden (to part, separate) with the ge- prefix and the past participle geschieden, meaning separated or divorced. The nounized form follows standard German patterns for ownership or class terms, yielding a cohesive label for people defined by their divorce status.

Usage and connotations can vary by context. In neutral reference, geschieden as an adjective simply states a fact about marital status. As a noun, Geschiedene designates a social category and may carry historical or demographic implications in discussions of family life, divorce rates, and related policy questions.