Breakdown of Wir werden das Gerücht widerlegen.
wir
we
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
werden
will (future auxiliary)
das Gerücht
the rumor
widerlegen
to refute
Questions & Answers about Wir werden das Gerücht widerlegen.
What does the prefix wider- mean in widerlegen, and how does it change the base verb legen?
The prefix wider- means "against" or "contrary to". The base verb legen means "to lay" or "to put". Together, widerlegen literally means "to lay against", which translates figuratively to "to refute" or "to disprove" an argument or rumor.
Is widerlegen a separable or inseparable verb?
It is inseparable. Verbs with the prefix wider- are almost always inseparable. This means if we used it in the present tense, it would stay as one word: Wir widerlegen das Gerücht. You do not split it and move the prefix to the end like you would with a separable verb.
How do I pronounce widerlegen? Where does the spoken stress go?
Because wider- is an inseparable prefix here, the spoken stress falls on the root of the verb, not the prefix. You pronounce it with the emphasis on the third syllable: wi-der-LE-gen.
Is wider- just a different spelling for wieder-?
No, they are completely distinct prefixes that happen to sound identical. The prefix wider- (without the e) means "against" and usually forms inseparable verbs like widerlegen (to refute) or widersprechen (to contradict). The prefix wieder- (with the e) means "again" and forms separable verbs like wiederkommen (to come back).
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