zu-infinitive
English
Etymology
From German zu + infinitive.
Noun
zu-infinitive (plural zu-infinitives)
- (grammar) a German infinitive form created by adding or infixing the particle zu and used in subordinate clauses
- abgeben → abzugeben
- vorbereiten → vorzubereiten
Usage notes
While theoretically any infinitive with zu could be considered a zu-infinitive (for example: haben → zu haben), this term is used primarily to refer to separable verbs with the zu particle infixed after the prefix.
Translations
a German infinitive form created by adding or infixing the particle zu
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