nominalisierender

Nominalisierender is a linguistic term used to describe an agent or process that nominalizes. It derives from the German verbs nominalisieren (to nominalize) and Nominalisierung (nominalization). In grammar, nominalization is the transformation of a word or a phrase into a noun or noun phrase. The form nominalisierender can function as a present participle used as an adjective to describe the process or the agent responsible for nominalization, for example in phrases like der nominalisierende Prozess or ein nominalisierender Eingriff.

There are two main strands of nominalization in German. Verbal nominalization turns verbs into nouns, as in das Laufen from laufen or das Lesen from lesen. Clause nominalization turns whole clauses into noun phrases, often with a nominalizing function, such as die Tatsache, dass er kommt (“the fact that he is coming”). The nominalisierender process, then, refers to the operation that brings about such nominalizations, whether by affixal methods (suffixes) or by syntactic reanalysis (zero-derivation) of words and phrases.

In use, nominalizations can increase abstraction and compactness in written language, but they also tend to produce longer noun phrases and heavier syntax. They are common in formal or academic German and can affect emphasis and argument structure. For non-native readers, dense nominalizations may reduce immediacy and clarity, so stylistic balance is often advised.

Related concepts include Nominalisierung in general and the distinction between verbal, adjectival, and clausal nominalizations. The term nominalisierender is primarily a descriptive label found in linguistic discussions rather than a everyday colloquial term.