stumme

Stumme is the feminine singular form of the German adjective stumm, meaning mute or silent. It is used to describe a feminine noun, for example die stumme Frau or eine stumme Person. In sentences without a preceding definite article, the form can still appear as the attributive adjective with the appropriate ending, such as eine stumme Frau ist leise.

When used predicatively after a linking verb, the adjective typically remains in its base form form and does not take the feminine ending. For instance, Sie ist stumm or Er blieb stumm. This predicative use contrasts with attributive use, where the adjective agrees with the noun.

Stumme can also occur as a capitalized noun, die Stumme, meaning “a mute person.” In this nominal use, the term refers to a person who is unable to speak, and like other German nouns it is capitalized. The noun form is relatively uncommon in everyday speech and is mainly found in more formal or historical contexts.

Etymology tracing connects stumm to the Germanic root meaning silent or unable to speak, with cognates in other Germanic languages. In modern German, stumm is widely used to describe people, animals, or sounds that are not vocal, and the related noun usage provides a way to refer to a mute individual as a linguistic category rather than a descriptive phrase.