getriebene

Getriebene is a form derived from the German verb treiben (to drive or propel) and appears primarily as the past participle getrieben used as an adjective, or occasionally as a nominalized form. In most technical contexts it denotes a component that is driven by another part through a gear train or transmission. The term emphasizes the direction of power flow: the driven element is the part that receives motion from the drive.

In mechanical engineering, getriebene describes elements that are moved by an input via gears, belts, or couplings. Common examples include getriebene Welle (driven shaft), getriebene Achse (driven axle) or getriebene Zahnräder in a gear set. This contrasts with the driving or äntriebsseite, which denotes the component that supplies motion. The expression is widely understood in German technical literature, though more precise terms such as getriebenes Bauteil or getriebener Ausgang are also used depending on context.

Grammatically, getriebene can function as an attributive adjective before a noun, with endings varying by gender, case, and article. For example: der getriebene Motor (the driven motor), die getriebene Welle (the driven shaft), ein getriebener Gleichlaufmotor. The past participle can also be nominalized: das Getriebene (the driven thing) or, in plural, die Getriebenen (the driven ones). The nominalized form is more common in figurative or descriptive language than in everyday technical writing.

Etymologically, Getriebene comes from treiben plus the noun Getriebe (gear or transmission), illustrating how motion is transmitted through mechanical systems.