durchgeschnittene

Durchgeschnittene is a German attributive form of the past participle durchgeschnitten, derived from durchschneiden (to cut through). It describes something that has been cut through or opened to reveal an interior, i.e., a cross-section. The form occurs before a noun and carries endings according to gender, number, and case. For example, feminine singular nominative/accusative: eine durchgeschnittene Scheibe; neuter singular nominative/accusative: das durchgeschnittene Stück. In other grammatical situations different endings are used, such as der durchgeschnittene Schnitt (masculine singular nominative) or die durchgeschnittenen Scheiben (plural).

Usage and contexts

Durchgeschnittene is commonly found in everyday language when describing food that has been cut through, like eine durchgeschnittene Tomate, or in scientific and technical contexts to denote a cross-section view, such as eine durchgeschnittene Gewebeprobe or ein durchgeschnittener Schnitt. It emphasizes that the interior or cross-section is visible or relevant for the description.

Grammatikalische Hinweise

As a participial adjective, durchgeschnittene behaves like other past participles used attributively. It is typically written lowercase when used as an adjective (durchgeschnittene Scheibe) but can be capitalized if nominalized to refer to a concept or object in a broader sense (das Durchgeschnittene). In predicative position, the form usually appears as durchgeschnitten (Der Stoff ist durchgeschnitten).

See also

durchschneiden, cross-section, slicing, cross-section view.