klar

Forms

klar (strong nominative masculine singular klarer, comparative klarer, superlative am klarsten)^[1] Beside the comparative klarer, the umlauted klärer and klärst were long in use, by Luther, Lessing, Goethe and Schiller among others, and Adelung recommended them.^[2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle High German klār, borrowed from Middle Dutch claer, under the influence of Old French cler, from Latin clārus (“loud, clear-sounding; bright, clear; famous”).^[3][4][5][1] It spread from the Lower Rhine in the 12th century and became a fashionable word of courtly poetry;^[4][6][5] Paul credits Heinrich von Veldeke with introducing it and Wolfram von Eschenbach with establishing it as a term of human beauty.^[4][6][5] The Grimms' dictionary, on the other hand, holds that Old French could not have given the long /aː/ and attributes the borrowing to the language of the church.^[2] Wiktionary also names Middle Low German klār as a possible source.^[1]

The Latin adjective belongs with calō (“to call out, summon”) and clāmō (“to shout”); its first sense, “loud, far-sounding”, matches that of the related hell.^[4][6] Köbler gives the root as Proto-Indo-European *kel- (“to call, shout”).^[7] The same word is Dutch klaar, English clear, French clair and Swedish klar.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Middle High German klār is first recorded in Albrecht von Halberstadt (1190–1200), and then in many courtly and religious texts, meaning “bright, shining, pure, beautiful”, also “distinct”.^[7][4] The neuter noun daʒ klār “the white of an egg” is recorded from the second half of the 13th century.^[7][8]

Semantic evolution

Paul takes “shining, bright” as the first sense, which survives in verklären and in the biblical Klarheit “glory, radiance”; today the word is mostly understood negatively, “free from cloudiness”.^[5] Applied to the mind it means “distinct, unambiguous”, already common in Luther, as in eine klare Vorstellung.^[5] In early New High German it was also an epithet of rank, “noble, illustrious”, in forms of address.^[9] Regionally it means “fine, finely ground”, of sand or paint.^[5][10]

In the language of seamen it means “completely ready, free of obstacles”, as in klar zum Gefecht “cleared for action”, and Low German seamen's aufklaren “to clear up” passed into the standard language.^[4][5][6] The derived aufklären was formed in the 16th century, and Aufklärung became a philosophical term in the 18th century, “the Enlightenment”.^[11][6] Austrian German keeps the noun as Eiklar or simply Klar “white of an egg”.^[5][10]

Timeline

• 12th century – Middle High German klār spreads from the Lower Rhine.^[4][3]
• 1190–1200 – klār is used by Albrecht von Halberstadt.^[7]
• 1250–1300 – daʒ klār “egg white” is recorded.^[7]
• 16th century – Luther often uses klar for “distinct, evident”;^[5][11] aufklären is formed.^[5][11]
• 18th century – Aufklärung becomes a philosophical term.^[6][11]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Transparent, not cloudy: ein klarer Bergsee.^[10][1]
2. Not clouded by mist or cloud: klares Wetter.^[10]
3. Distinct, sharply outlined: eine klare Linie.^[10]
4. (of sounds) Clear and ringing, not hoarse: ein klarer Ton.^[10]
5. Sober and rational, able to judge well: klar denken.^[10]
6. Unambiguous, plain to everyone: eine klare Antwort.^[10][1]
7. (nautical, aviation) Ready for use: Das Boot ist klar.^[10][4][12]
8. (regional) Fine, finely ground.^[10][5]

Adverb

1. (colloquial) Of course, obviously; as an interjection, klar! or na klar! “sure!”.^[1]

Word family

• klären
• Klarheit
• aufklären
• Aufklärung
• erklären
• verklären
• Eiklar
• klarstellen
• klarkommen
• startklar

Related words

• hell
• Reklame
• deklamieren
• English clear

Usage notes

Klipp und klar means “quite plainly”.^[5] Klar wie Kloßbrühe “as clear as dumpling broth” is said jokingly of something obvious, although the broth is cloudy.^[11]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilhelm (1854–1961), Deutsches Wörterbuch, 16 vols. in 32, Leipzig: Hirzel; digital: Wörterbuchnetz, Trier Center for Digital Humanities, p. 11, 981
3. ^ a b c Kluge, Friedrich; Seebold, Elmar (2011), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 25th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 496
4. ^ a b c d e f g h Pfeifer, Wolfgang, et al. (1993), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Deutschen, 2nd ed., Berlin: Akademie-Verlag; digital revised version in the DWDS, dwds.de
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Paul, Hermann (2002), Deutsches Wörterbuch: Bedeutungsgeschichte und Aufbau unseres Wortschatzes, 10th ed., ed. Helmut Henne, Heidrun Kämper and Georg Objartel, Tübingen: Niemeyer
6. ^ a b c d e f Duden. Das Herkunftswörterbuch: Etymologie der deutschen Sprache (2020), 6th ed., Duden vol. 7, Berlin: Dudenverlag, p. 437
7. ^ a b c d e Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Mittelhochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling
8. ^ Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilhelm (1854–1961), Deutsches Wörterbuch, 16 vols. in 32, Leipzig: Hirzel; digital: Wörterbuchnetz, Trier Center for Digital Humanities, p. 11, 997
9. ^ Anderson, Robert R.; Goebel, Ulrich; Reichmann, Oskar, eds. (1989–), Frühneuhochdeutsches Wörterbuch, Berlin / New York: De Gruyter; FWB-online, fwb-online.de
10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Duden. Das große Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache in zehn Bänden (1999), 3rd ed., Mannheim: Dudenverlag
11. ^ a b c d e Wahrig-Burfeind, Renate, ed., Wahrig Herkunftswörterbuch, Gütersloh / München: Wissen Media Verlag; online edition at wissen.de
12. ^ Wiktionary, das freie Wörterbuch (German Wiktionary), de.wiktionary.org