Der Zins steigt langsam.

The interest rate rises slowly.

Breakdown of Der Zins steigt langsam.

• langsam: slowly
• steigen: to rise
• der Zins: the interest rate

Questions & Answers about Der Zins steigt langsam.

What does the article der tell me in Der Zins?

It shows that Zins is masculine and in the nominative case as the sentence’s subject. The full singular paradigm is:

• Nominative: der Zins (subject)
• Accusative: den Zins
• Dative: dem Zins
• Genitive: des Zinses

Why is it singular Der Zins here? Can I also say Die Zinsen steigen langsam?

Both occur, but you’ll hear the plural much more often in real-life finance talk:

• Der Zins (singular) can refer to an individual interest rate or “the interest rate level” as a concept.
• Die Zinsen (plural) is the typical way to talk about interest rates in general. So, Die Zinsen steigen is very idiomatic in news and economics, while Der Zins steigt is also correct, somewhat more technical or abstract.

Is Zins the same as Zinssatz?

Not exactly:

• Zinssatz is the specific rate (the percentage), e.g., Der Zinssatz liegt bei 4,5 %.
• Zins/Zinsen can mean the interest as money paid/received, or—by extension—the level of interest rates. In careful writing, use Zinssatz when you mean the exact percentage.