verzerrte

Verzerrte is a German term that can function as both a verb form and an adjective, depending on the context. As a verb form, verzerrte is the Präteritum (simple past) of verzerren, meaning to distort, skew, or twist. For example: Er verzerrte das Foto. This use describes a completed action in the past and is common in narrative or written prose, though in everyday speech the Perfekt form verzerrt is often preferred.

As an adjective, verzerrte means “distorted” or “skewed” and is used attributively to describe a noun. It is declined like a typical German adjective after articles or determiners. With a definite article: der verzerrte Spiegel, die verzerrte Stimme, das verzerrte Bild. In plural: die verzerrten Spiegel, die verzerrten Stimmen, die verzerrten Bilder. With an indefinite article: ein verzerrter Spiegel, eine verzerrte Stimme, ein verzerrtes Bild; plural without a definite article: verzerrte Spiegel, verzerrte Stimmen, verzerrte Bilder. Without an article, the strong ending -e is used in the singular and -e in the plural (verzerrte Bilder, verzerrte Stimmen).

Usage and nuance: verzerrte frequently appears in discussions of images, data, or perceptions that have been altered from their original state. It can describe physical distortions (a distorted mirror or photo) as well as conceptual distortions (a distorted report or biased interpretation). Related terms include Verzerrung (distortion) and Verzerren (to distort).

See also: Verzerrung, Verzerren.