Zugezogen

Zugezogen is the past participle of the German verb zuziehen. It is used in several senses and can function as a participle, an adjective, or a noun in everyday language.

One common meaning is to draw something shut or to close it by pulling: die Vorhänge sind zugezogen (the curtains are drawn/closed). In this sense, zugezogen describes the state resulting from the action of zuziehen.

Another sense refers to moving into a place. With this usage, zuziehen takes the meaning “to move into” or “to relocate to,” as in Wir sind in eine neue Wohnung zugezogen (We moved into a new apartment). This form is typically combined with a present perfect construction using sein: Wir sind in eine neue Wohnung zugezogen.

A third sense is to incur or acquire something, often something undesired such as illness or costs: sich etwas zuziehen. Examples include Er hat sich eine Erkältung zugezogen (He contracted a cold) or Durch das Projekt hat er sich Kosten zugezogen (He incurred costs).

As a noun, Zugezogene or die Zugezogenen refers to people who have recently moved to a place, i.e., newcomers. The term is widely used to describe residents who were not born in a city or region and have recently settled there.

Notes on usage: zuziehen retains a sense of direction or result in each context—closing, moving in, or acquiring. In contrast to the verb form, the noun emphasizes the social aspect of relocation, rather than the act itself. The word is common in standard German and appears in both formal and colloquial writing.