gemaltes

Gemaltes is the attributive form of the past participle gemalt, derived from the verb malen (to paint). In German, gemalt is the participle, and gemaltes serves as its adjective form when describing a neuter singular noun in the nominative or accusative case. For example, ein gemaltes Bild means a painted picture. The ending -es signals neuter singular in this position; feminine or masculine nouns would take different endings (eine gemalte Landschaft, ein gemalter Mann).

As a participle used as an adjective, gemaltes typically describes a completed act of painting. It is common in art-related descriptions, catalogs, and everyday speech to specify that an object is painted rather than unpainted or drawn by other means. For comparison, gemalt contrasts with other German terms such as gemälde (painting) and Malerei (painting as a discipline).

Gemaltes can also appear in a nominalized form, das Gemalte, meaning “the painted thing” or “the painting,” though this usage is relatively rare in contemporary prose and tends to appear in more literary or historical contexts. In ordinary language, speakers usually prefer the noun Gemälde or the phrase ein gemaltes Bild to refer to a painting.

Grammar notes: gemaltes is declined like a regular attributive adjective after ein- or der/die/das in neuter singular. In other grammatical forms, the ending changes accordingly (gemaltes Bild, eines gemalten Bildes, etc.).

See also: malen, gemälde, Gemälde, Malerei, past participles used as adjectives in German.