Tieferem

Tieferem is a German grammatical form: it is the dative singular masculine and neuter form of the comparative adjective tiefer, derived from tief meaning deep. It occurs when the adjective is declined in the dative case without a determiner, or in constructions where only the adjective accompanies the noun.

Morphology and usage

In the strong (no determiner) declension, the dative singular masculine and neuter ending for the adjective is -em, giving tieferem. For feminine nouns the corresponding dative singular form is tieferer, and for plural nouns the dative plural ending is tieferen. When a determiner or article is present, other endings apply (for example, dem tieferen Wasser or im tieferen Wasser, depending on the exact determiners and prepositions).

Examples

Common uses include phrases with prepositions that require the dative: in tieferem Wasser, aus tieferem Grund, bei tieferem Schnee. These illustrate the strong declension where no article accompanies the noun. The form also appears in contexts like with certain numerals or possessives where the determiner pattern leads to other endings, but tieferem specifically marks the dative singular masculine/neuter without a determiner.

Etymology and related forms

Tieferem comes from the adjective tiefer, the comparative of tief. Related forms include tiefer (positive/comparative base) and tieferer (feminine dative singular or other contexts). The adjective tief itself traces back to Old High German and related Germanic roots meaning “deep.”

See also

tief, tiefer, tieferer, declension (German adjectives).