How do you say Pressure in German?

Whether it’s the weight of responsibility, a finger on a button, or ink on a page - Germans call it Druck. It’s a small word with serious force behind it, both literally and figuratively.

The noun Druck means pressure, printing, or a print, and it’s one of the 1000 most frequently used nouns in German. It shows up in science, emotions, social situations, and technology.

It’s a masculine noun, so we say der Druck.

Pronunciation

Druck is pronounced [dʁʊk], with the short u of “put" and a final k.

• The “u” is short and round,
• And the whole word lands with weight - just like what it describes.

Example sentences:

• Der Druck auf die Regierung wächst.The pressure on the government is increasing.
• Dieser Drucker liefert einen sehr guten Druck.This printer produces a very good print.

Nuance and usage tips

Druck has two core meanings:

1. Pressure / stress / force
   • unter Druck stehen - to be under pressure
   • Druck ausüben - to apply pressure (on a person or situation)
     jemanden unter Druck setzen - to put pressure on someone
   • Luftdruck - air pressure
2. Print / printing
   • Buchdruck - book printing
   • Farbdruck - color print
   • ein schöner Druck - a nice (printed) picture or copy

Useful contrasts, depending on context:

• For pressure: Entspannung (relaxation, feminine)
• For a reproduced artwork, ein Druck can be contrasted with das Original; an original print is itself also an original work.

Grammatical case examples: