gefährdete

Gefährdete is the inflected form of the German adjective gefährdet, meaning endangered or at risk. It is used to describe nouns that face a high risk of decline, loss, or extinction. The form gefährede occurs in attributive position, especially with feminine singular and plural nouns, for example eine gefährdete Art (a threatened species) or gefährdete Arten (endangered species). The base gefährdet derives from gefährden, to endanger, and the suffix -det marks a participial adjective describing a state.

In conservation and ecology, gefärdete is widely used to convey risk to biodiversity. It is typically applied to biological contexts such as Arten and Artenvielfalt, indicating species whose survival in the wild is uncertain or under threat. Beyond biology, the term can describe other domains facing decline or danger, such as gefährdete Sprachen (endangered languages) or gefährdete Kulturen (endangered cultures). The expression functions as a qualitative descriptor and does not, by itself, establish an official conservation category; formal status is usually defined by organizations like the IUCN Red List or national lists.

Usage notes: gefährede is an attributive adjective that changes its ending according to the surrounding article or determiner, and its predicative form is gefährdet (e.g., Die Arten sind gefährdet). In German, gray-area nuance exists between synonyms such as bedroht or gefährdet, with gefährdet commonly used in formal and scientific contexts to denote risk of extinction or serious decline.

See also: endangered species, biodiversity, IUCN Red List, endangered languages.