Unendliche

Unendliche is a German adjective meaning endless or infinite. It is the inflected form of unendlich used before nouns to describe something without end or limit. For example: eine unendliche Geschichte, unendliche Möglichkeiten, unendliche Reihen. The base form unendlich can also function as an adjective or adverb.

In mathematics, unendliche occurs in terms such as unendliche Mengen (infinite sets) and unendliche Reihen (infinite series). The corresponding noun is Unendlichkeit, or infinity, and the symbol ∞ is commonly used to denote it. In mathematical philosophy, distinctions are made between potential infinity (a process that could continue indefinitely, such as counting natural numbers) and actual infinity (a completed infinite total).

Beyond mathematics, das Unendliche appears in philosophy and theology to reference the concept of the infinite beyond finite boundaries. In literature and everyday language, unendliche is frequently used metaphorically to convey vastness, perpetual continuation, or boundlessness.

Etymology and usage notes: unendliche derives from un- (not) + endlich (finite). The form changes with gender and number, as with other German adjectives: unendliche Geschichte (feminine singular with a determiner), das unendliche Universum (neuter singular with a definite article), die unendlichen Möglichkeiten (plural). The noun form for the concept is Unendlichkeit.