unwahr

Unwahr is a German adjective meaning not true or false. It describes statements or information that do not correspond to fact. In everyday language it is often replaced by falsch, but unwahr carries a slightly stronger emphasis on factual inaccuracy and is more common in formal or literary contexts. It can modify a noun as eine unwahre Behauptung or function predicatively in a sentence as Die Behauptung ist unwahr. The related noun Unwahrheit denotes a falsehood or untruth, and is used with verbs like verbreiten (to spread) or sagen.

Origin and variation: Unwahr is derived from the adjective wahr (true) with the negating prefix un-. The form has historical roots in older stages of German and remains standard in modern usage.

Usage notes: In legal or journalistic language, unwahre Behauptung or unwahre Tatsachenbehauptung is common for referring to false assertions about facts. In everyday speech many speakers prefer falsch for general incorrectness, while unwahr stresses the truth-value of a specific claim.

See also: Wahrheit, Lüge, Unwahrheit.