glaubwürdige

Glaubwürdige is the attributive form of the German adjective glaubwürdig, meaning capable of being believed or trusted. The word conveys believability or reliability and is commonly used to describe statements, sources, people, or information as trustworthy. Its semantic field is close to verlässlich, zuverlässig or seriös, while the opposite is unglaubwürdig or zweifelhaft.

Etymology and usage: glaubwürdig derives from glauben (to believe) and würdig (worthy). In everyday and journalistic language, it is used in phrases such as eine glaubwürdige Quelle (a credible source), glaubwürdige Berichte (believable reports) or ein glaubwürdiger Zeuge (a credible witness). The noun form Glaubwürdigkeit denotes the quality of being believable or credible and is a key concept in evaluating information and sources.

Grammar note: glaubwürdig is an adjective and inflects according to standard German declension rules. The form glaubwürdige appears in attributive position before feminine singular nouns (die glaubwürdige Quelle) or in certain plural forms depending on the article and case. Predicatively, one would say er ist glaubwürdig (he is credible).

Context and relevance: Glaubwürdigkeit is central in media, science, and public discourse, where the believability of claims relies on evidence, consistency, and sources. Discussions about credibility often address potential biases, methods of verification, and corroboration across multiple sources.

See also: Glaubwürdigkeit, glaubwürdig (as adjective), Quellenkritik, Beleg, Beweiskraft.