lebenslos

Lebenslos is a German adjective meaning lacking life or vitality; lifeless, inanimate, or devoid of liveliness. It is formed from the noun Leben (life) and the suffix -los (without). The term can describe physical objects that have no life as well as states, atmospheres, or appearances where vitality is absent.

In usage, lebenslos is relatively formal or literary. It is not a direct synonym for tot when referring to people, where terms like tot or gestorben are more common. Lebenslos is often chosen to convey emptiness, sterility, or emotional numbness, for example in descriptions of landscapes, rooms, or moods: a lebensloser Raum, eine lebenslose Landschaft, or someone who appears lebenslos. The nuance is one of absence of life or spirit rather than the moment of death.

Grammatically, lebenslos is an attributive adjective that agrees with the noun it modifies: ein lebensloser Zustand (masculine), eine lebenslose Landschaft (feminine), lebenslose Materialien (plural). It can also occur in predicative position: Der Raum ist lebenslos still. The term is typically used in descriptive, literary, or scientific contexts, and is less common in everyday speech for describing living beings.

See also terms related to life and vitality, such as Leben, lebendig, and tot, as well as expressions for atmosphere and sentiment in literature. Lebenslos serves as a precise descriptor when the absence of life or vitality needs emphasis beyond simple death or emptiness.