sympathetische

Sympathetische is the inflected attributive form of the German adjective sympathisch, meaning friendly, likable, or agreeable. It appears before a noun as part of the attributive adjective form in various gender and case combinations, for example: die sympathische Frau (nominative or accusative feminine), der sympathische Mann (nominative masculine), das sympathische Kind (nominative neuter), die sympathischen Freunde (plural). The endings change with the noun’s case and article.

In usage, sympathisch describes a person’s affable or agreeable character. The word is common in everyday speech and writing. Predicative use, as in "sie ist sympathisch" (she is sympathetic/likable), does not require the -e ending; the adjective remains unchanged as sympathisch.

Etymology and related terms: sympathisch comes from the noun Sympathie, which itself derives from Greek through French and other sources, reflecting a sense of shared feeling or affinity. The related noun Sympathie refers to a feeling of affinity or favorable regard, while the term empathie is a cognate concept related to understanding another’s feelings.

Notes: Sympathetische by itself is not a separate linguistic concept; it is simply one grammatical form of the adjective sympathisch. Correct usage depends on gender, number, and case of the noun it modifies, and it contrasts with the predicative form sympathisch used after a linking verb. See also Sympathie and Empathie for related ideas.