auftragen

Auftragen is a German verb formed with the prefix auf- added to tragen, meaning to carry or wear. The primary sense is to apply or spread a substance onto a surface. It is commonly used in painting and coating, cosmetics, and medicine, among other contexts. For example, man verwendet it in phrases such as die Farbe auftragen (to apply paint), eine Creme auftragen (to apply a cream), or eine Salbe auftragen (to apply an ointment). In medicine the term is often used to describe placing a preparation on the skin or another body part, whereas verabreichen is typical for giving doses orally or by injection.

The verb is separable in its infinitive form and in the present tense: ich trage die Farbe auf. In perfect tense it is conjugated with haben: ich habe die Farbe aufgetragen. The participle aufgetragen can function as a past participle or an adjective, as in aufgetragene Farbe (applied paint).

Etymology traces the meaning to the combination of auf- (onto) and tragen (to carry or wear), reflecting the sense of putting something onto a surface. Related expressions include Make-up auftragen (to apply makeup) and Lotion auftragen (to apply lotion).

In summary, Auftragen denotes the act of putting a substance onto a surface or body, with wide use in everyday and technical language, and it is a separable-prefix verb whose conjugation follows standard German patterns.