Deutsch · B2 · vocabulary · 4 minutes
Debate and evidence
Qualify claims, test assumptions, and respond to objections with precise argument vocabulary.
Understand the choice
A rigorous discussion separates a claim from its evidence and an objection from a personal attack. Identify assumptions, compare standpoints, weigh consequences, and make the conclusion proportional to the support.
Core rule: Ein Argument vorbringen, einen Beleg liefern, einen Einwand entkräften, and eine Schlussfolgerung ziehen are formal collocations.
Notice it in context
Das Argument klingt plausibel, beruht aber auf einer fragwürdigen Annahme.
The argument sounds plausible but rests on a questionable assumption.
Argument is subject of two coordinated verbs; auf + dative Annahme exposes its basis; fragwürdig evaluates it.
Dieser Beleg entkräftet den wichtigsten Einwand.
This evidence refutes the most important objection.
Beleg supplies support and Einwand the answered challenge.
Nach sorgfältiger Abwägung änderte sie ihren Standpunkt und ihre Schlussfolgerung.
After careful consideration she changed her position and conclusion.
Abwägung leads to revisions of Standpunkt and Schlussfolgerung.
What to remember
- Argument means a reason, not an interpersonal argument; Streit is a quarrel.
- Voreingenommenheit is explicit bias; Tendenz can be a tendency without unfairness.
Common trap: Do not present an Annahme as a Beleg. An assumption needs independent support.