Zusammenzählen

Zusammenzählen is a German verb meaning to sum up or add together. It denotes the arithmetic operation of combining two or more numbers to obtain a total. The action can be performed on integers, fractions, or decimals and is used in everyday calculation as well as in formal contexts such as accounting, budgeting, and statistical data handling. In everyday language, it is common to speak of “Zahlen zusammenzählen” to obtain a Gesamtbetrag or Gesamtzahl.

Grammatical note: zusammenzählen is a separable verb. In the present tense you say Ich zähle die Zahlen zusammen, and in the perfect tense Ich habe die Zahlen zusammengezählt. The prefix zusammen- signals the result of counting the quantities as a whole. The noun forms related to the process include die Zusammenzählung or die Summierung; in technical contexts the English loanword Summation or Addieren is also used.

Contexts and usage: In mathematics and education, zusammenzählen refers to performing the addition of numbers. In data handling and finance, it describes adding up values to obtain totals, such as Umsätze, Ausgaben, or Stimmen. The term is often preferred when emphasising the act of aggregating quantities rather than simply listing items (aufzählen) or detailing each addend (addieren).

Synonyms and contrasts: Zusammenzählen is closely related to addieren and summieren, but it emphasizes the act of combining values into a total rather than merely listing items. It is distinct from auflisten (to enumerate) and sometimes used interchangeably with addieren in colloquial speech, though addieren is the more technical term in formal mathematics. Etymology: from zusammen (together) and zählen (to count).