Weiterleiten

Weiterleiten is a German verb meaning to forward or relay information, messages, or documents from one recipient to another. It is used in everyday speech, formal correspondence, and information technology. The action can preserve the original content or include brief commentary or instructions.

Grammatically, weiterleiten is a separable prefix verb: ich leite weiter, du leitest weiter, er leitet weiter, wir leiten weiter, ihr leitet weiter, sie leiten weiter. In the perfect tense it is weitergeleitet (ich habe weitergeleitet; er hat weitergeleitet). In the simple past one can say ich leitete weiter. The participle form is weitergeleitet.

Common contexts include forwarding emails, messages, or files. In sentences one might say: „Ich leite dir die E-Mail weiter.“ Distinctions exist with similar verbs such as weiterreichen (to hand on or relay, often physically or subsequently) and weitergeben (to hand over or impart). In IT and digital communication, forwarding is frequently referred to as a Funktion or Prozess, with variants like automatische Weiterleitung (automatic forwarding) or Weiterleitungsregeln (forwarding rules).

Etymology and related terms: the compound comes from weiter (onward) and leiten (to lead or direct). The noun for the act is Weiterleitung. In technical contexts, one often speaks of forwarding functions or services, aligning with terms in other languages such as forward or relay.

Privacy and legality: forwarding content may involve personal data protected by data protection laws; consent, data minimization, and access controls should be considered, particularly in professional or public communications.