vertrauter

Vertrauter is a German term that can function as a noun or as an adjective. As a noun, it denotes a trusted person—a confidant, advisor, or close associate whom someone believes and relies upon. The Vertraute or Vertrauten is the person one shares private information with or depends on for support, and the word is common in both personal speech and formal contexts such as politics or business.

As an adjective, Vertrauter is the comparative form of vertraut, meaning familiar, trusted, or intimate. It is used to describe relationships or knowledge that are more intimate or better known. For example, a person can be described as a vertrauter Freund (a trusted friend), or one might say that someone is mir vertrauter geworden (has become more familiar to me). The comparative and superlative forms appear in contexts like noch vertrauter or am vertrautesten, depending on sentence structure and declension.

Etymology traces Vertrauter to vertrauen, trust, and ver- as a prefix forming adjectives and nouns. In usage, the noun Der Vertraute (masculine), Die Vertraute (feminine), and plural Die Vertrauten are common, though adaptive spellings and plural forms can occur with different contexts or stylistic choices.

In literature and everyday language, Vertrauter often implies a person with whom one maintains discretion and loyalty, frequently serving as an adviser or ally. The term is distinct from related concepts such as Vertraulichkeit (confidentiality) and Vertrauen (trust) but sits within the broader vocabulary of personal relationships and formal networks.

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