lächle

Lächle is the first-person singular present indicative form of the German verb lächeln, which means to smile. The verb denotes a facial expression in which the corners of the mouth rise and the cheeks may lift, often indicating friendliness, amusement, or politeness. The base form lächeln is used in dictionaries and in compound constructions such as zulächeln or anlächeln.

Conjugation and forms

- Present: ich lächle, du lächelst, er/sie/es lächelt, wir lächeln, ihr lächelt, sie/Sie lächeln

- Imperative (informal): lächle (du), lächelt (ihr); formal: lächeln Sie

- Preterite: ich lächelte, du lächeltest, er lächelte, wir lächelten, ihr lächeltet, sie lächelten

- Participle: gelächelt

The gerund or verbal noun is das Lächeln, meaning the act or expression of smiling.

Usage

Lächeln is typically intransitive: it describes the act of smiling rather than directly affecting another object. It can be used with adverbs of manner or with prepositional phrases such as über, to smile about something, or with phrases like jdm zulächeln (to smile at someone) or jdn anlächeln (to smile at someone). Common collocations include ein Lächeln, freundliches Lächeln, and ein Lächeln auf den Lippen, meaning a smile on one’s lips.

See also

Related terms include lachen (to laugh), schmunzeln (to smirk), and das Lächeln (the noun for the smile). The concept is widely used in German to convey politeness, warmth, or amusement, depending on context.