gegolten

Gegolten is the past participle of the German verb gelten, which means to be valid, to apply, or to count. The form gegolten is used mainly to indicate that something has been in effect or has applied in the past.

Etymology and range: Gelten originates from Old High German geltan and has cognates in other Germanic languages. The past participle gegolten appears in perfect tenses and other composite forms with the auxiliary haben.

Usage and examples: Gelten is primarily intransitive and common in legal, administrative, and formal discourse. In the present tense one says, for example, Es gilt als sicher or Diese Regel gilt. The past participle gegolten is used with haben to form the perfect: Dieses Gesetz hat gegolten, until it was replaced by a newer regulation. Another example: Der Vertrag hat gegolten, solange alle Parteien zustimmten. The phrase used to describe the period of validity often employs temporal clauses like bis, solange, or seit.

Distinctions: The related adjective geltend means "claiming" or "in force" in certain contexts, but it is not the same as gegolten. Gehört to be careful not to confuse gegolten (past participle of gelten) with geltend (present participle/adjective).

See also: gelten (verb); geltend; German legal vocabulary.