erleichterte

Erleichterte is a German term derived from the verb erleichtern, meaning to make something easier or to relieve a burden. The word can function in two main grammatical ways: as a finite verb form in the simple past and as an attributive adjective describing conditions, procedures, or other nouns.

As a verb form, erleichterte is the simple past (Präteritum) conjugation for ich, er, sie, es and related subjects (ich erleichterte, du erleichtertest, er erleichterte, wir erleichterten, ihr erleichtertet, sie erleichterten). In this use, it means that someone or something made a process easier in the past, for example: Die Behörden erleichterten den Zugang zum Programm.

As an attributive adjective, erleichterte appears before a noun to mean “facilitated” or “eased.” It agrees with the noun in gender, number, and case, as in erleichterte Bedingungen (facilitated conditions), erleichterte Verfahren (facilitated procedures) or erleichterte Einreisebedingungen (facilitated entry conditions). This usage is common in legal, administrative, and policy language to describe procedures or rules that have been simplified or made less burdensome.

Linguistic note: erleichtern is built with the prefix er- plus leicht (light, easy), conveying the sense of making something lighter to carry or perform. The semantic field includes both practical facilitation (procedures, access) and, in the related adjective form erleichtert, emotional relief (Ich bin erleichtert), though the emotional sense is usually expressed with erleichtert rather than erleichterte.

Related terms include erleichtert (relieved) and Vereinfachung (simplification). The form erleichterte thus appears primarily in past-tense verb usage or as an attributive adjective describing facilitated conditions.