konkret German · revision 35961

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1766, Winckelmann|origins=la crēscō}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /kɔŋˈkʁeːt/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''konkret''' (strong nominative masculine singular konkreter, comparative konkreter, superlative am konkretesten)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|la|concrētus|t=grown together, thickened, solid]], taken over in the 18th century from the language of philosophy.^(Kluge 2011|524)^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Duden 7 2007) The Latin adjective is the past participle of [[m|la|concrēscō|t=to grow together, harden]], from [[m|la|con-|t=together]] and [[m|la|crēscō|t=to grow]].^(Kluge 2011|524)^(Wahrig Herkunftswörterbuch) Medieval philosophy had made the participle the opposite of [[m|la|abstractus]] from the 12th century on, beginning with Gilbert of Poitiers, and German borrowed the word as a term of that pair.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(DFWB) The same word is [[nl|concreet]], [[en|concrete]], [[fr|concret]] and [[sv|konkret]].^(Kluge 2011|524) Through the Latin verb of growing it is related to [[kreieren]].^(Kluge 2011|524)^(Duden 7 2007)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ At first German writers mostly kept the Latin phrase ''in concreto'', found in 1765 in the ''Allgemeine deutsche Bibliothek'', which Wieland in 1798 still called the way the schools speak.^(DFWB) The adjective itself appears in Winckelmann's essay on allegory of 1766, which speaks of ''concrete Bilder'' “concrete images”, meaning things perceptible and solid as opposed to abstract notions.^(DFWB)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Paul defines the word as “really present, individual, definite”, the opposite of [[abstrakt]], and quotes Brecht's line ''Und die Frage konkret gestellt'' “and the question put concretely”.^(Paul 2002) From the late 18th century linguistics used the noun [[Konkretum]] for a noun naming something perceptible, after the logicians' Medieval Latin ''concretum''.^(Pfeifer 1993) The verb [[konkretisieren]] “to make concrete, state more precisely” is a 20th-century word, though ''Konkretisierung'' is found from the middle of the 19th century.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Paul 2002)

+

+ Since about 1950 the adjective has named movements in the arts: ''konkrete Poesie'' works directly with the material of language, and Öyvind Fahlström published a manifesto for it in 1953.^(Paul 2002) ''Konkrete Musik'' and ''konkrete Kunst'' are loan translations of French ''musique concrète'' and ''art concret''.^(Duden GWDS 1999) Hungarian took the word as [[hu|konkrét]], recorded from 1861.^(LWP)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 12th century – Medieval philosophy sets Latin ''concretus'' against ''abstractus''.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(DFWB)

+ * 1765 – The Latin phrase ''in concreto'' is used in a German review.^(DFWB)

+ * 1766 – Winckelmann writes of ''concrete Bilder''.^(DFWB)

+ * Late 18th century – The noun ''Konkretum'' enters the grammar of nouns.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * Mid-19th century – First record of ''Konkretisierung''.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 1861 – Hungarian ''konkrét'' is recorded.^(LWP)

+ * 1941 – ''konkretisieren'' appears in the Duden.^(Paul 2002)

+ * 1953 – Öyvind Fahlström's manifesto for ''konkrete Poesie''.^(Paul 2002)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # [[m|en|concrete]], [[m|en|tangible]]: perceptible by the senses, actually present, not [[abstrakt]]: ''Der Plan muss sich an der konkreten Wirklichkeit messen lassen.'' Also in names of artistic movements: ''konkrete Kunst'', ''konkrete Musik'', ''konkrete Poesie''.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+ # Relating to the particular case in question: ''Was bedeutet das konkret für unsere Abteilung?''^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+ # Present at the moment, now at hand: ''in diesem konkreten Fall''.^(Duden GWDS 1999)

+ # Definite and [[m|en|precise]], clear: ''Sie nannte konkrete Zahlen.'' Used as an adverb it means “in concrete terms, in practice”.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[konkretisieren]]

+ * [[Konkretum]]

+ * [[Konkretisierung]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[abstrakt]]

+ * [[kreieren]]

+ * [[en|concrete]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}