übersetzte

Übersetzte is a form of the German verb übersetzen. It represents the simple past tense (Präteritum) for the first- or third-person singular: ich übersetzte, er/sie/es übersetzte. Because the same spelling can also occur in the Konjunktiv II (a subjunctive form) in some constructions, the exact meaning often depends on context. The corresponding past participle is übersetzt, which is used with auxiliary verbs to form perfect tenses (ich habe übersetzt).

The verb übersetzen has two main senses in modern German. The primary meaning is to translate text from one language into another (eine Passage ins Deutsche übersetzen). The secondary meaning is to ferry or carry something across a body of water or to transfer something from one place to another (eine Brücke übersetzen). Both meanings share the sense of crossing or transferring, but they occur in different contexts.

Usage notes: Because übersetzte can be confused with other forms, context is important. For example, ich übersetzte den Text ins Englische clearly denotes a narrative past action. In everyday speech, speakers often prefer the present perfect form ich habe übersetzt to indicate a completed translation without relying on the ambiguous Präteritum/Konjunktiv II form. In dictionaries, übersetzte is listed as the Präteritum and sometimes as a Konjunktiv II form of übersetzen; the typical indicative past is distinguished by context and auxiliary verbs.

Übersetzte is not a noun or a proper noun; it functions strictly as a verb form.