Reicheren

Reicheren is an inflected form of the German adjective reich, which means rich or wealthy. It is not a standalone word with its own meaning; rather, it appears when the adjective is declined for case, number, and gender in a sentence. Reicheren corresponds to the comparative stem reich- plus the standard -en ending used in certain inflection patterns. The base comparative form is reicher, but when the form is required to take an ending, it can appear as reicheren (for example, in plural or in some singular cases after determiners).

Usage and common forms

Reicheren occurs in several common contexts after definite or determiner-bearing nouns. Examples include:

- Den reicheren Mann (accusative singular masculine after a definite article: the richer man)

- Dem reicheren Mann (dative singular masculine)

- Die reicheren Männer (nominative plural: the richer men)

- Den reicheren Männern (dative plural: to the richer men)

- In den reicheren Ländern (in the richer countries)

Relation to other forms

When there is no article or a strong declension is used, different endings appear, such as reichen Länder in the plural with the weak vs. strong patterns. The form reicheren specifically arises from the combination of the comparative stem reicher with an ending chosen for the given case and number, as required by German adjective declension rules. Because it is an inflected form, reicheren does not function as a separate noun or adjective by itself.

Etymology and meaning

The word reich comes from Germanic roots meaning wealth or abundance, and its comparative reicher means “richer.” Reicheren, as an inflected form, signals that the noun it describes is being stated in a specific grammatical role and number, rather than introducing a new lexical meaning.

In summary, reicheren is a declined, plural- or case-dependent form of the adjective reich, used to express “the richer” in various grammatical contexts.