Extended Modifiers in English: An adjective designates an attribute (big, little, angry, sweet, etc.

) that then modifies or describes a noun ("a holyterror," "an honest politician," "a compassionate conservative"). In addition to such "ordinary" forms, English can construct adjectives from present or past participles. In the case of the present participles, the constructed adjective indicates the activity being performed by the noun: "a babbling brook," "a running dog of capitalism," "aweeping willow." As these examples show, the present participle is normally formed by adding -ing to the infinitive. Past participles that are used as adjectives normally indicate an activity that affects the modified noun: "an expressed opinion," "a renovated car," "a forgottenprinciple." As these examples indicate, a past participle is normally formed by adding -ed (or some variant) to the infinitive form of a weak (regular) verb or an -en (or some variant) to a strong (irregular) verb. In a limited way, English permits some extension of this modifier (with, or sometimes without, a hyphen), so that we can talk about "a little-known fact," "a long-awaited response," "his yet-to-bewritten book," "a soon-to-be-forgotten boyfriend," "a backstabbing boot-licker," "TheEnglish-Speaking Peoples' Union, or " her often-missing husband." Longer extensions, however, are not standard and at best lead to comical formulations. The basketball-player Darryl (Chocolate Thunder) Dawkins used this to effect when assigning names to his spectacular dunks. After dunking over Bill Robinzine and smashing the glass backboard in the process, he called that action The Chocolate-Thunder-Flying, Glass-Flying, Robinzine-Crying, BabiesCrying, Glass-Still-Flying, Cats-Crying, Rump-Roasting, BunToasting, Thank You-Wham-Bam-I-Am-Jam.

Extended Modifiers in German: It is possible to create participial adjectives in German, as well. A German present participle is formed by adding -d to the infinitive; for that to become an adjective requires the further addition of the proper ending. Here, as in English, the adjective constructed from a present participle indicates the activity being performed by the modified noun:
ein laufender Hund ein weinendes Kind lesende Mnche Bellende Hunde beien nicht. ein wachsendes Problem a running dog a crying child reading monks Barking dogs don't bite. a growing problem

Constructing German past participles is a little more complicated. To see all the possibilities, consult the page on the present perfect tense. These participles also require the addition of the proper ending to become an adjective. Here, too, past participles, when they are formed from a transitive verb, indicate an activity that affects the modified noun:
eine geschlossene Gesellschaft ein gebrauchter Wagen ein ungeschriebenes Blatt die zerstrte Stadt das verlorene Buch ein unverdienter Tadel die erzwungene Emigration a private (closed) party a used car a blank (unwritten) sheet of paper; tabula rasa the destroyed city the lost book an undeserved rebuke the forced emigration

Berlin Memorial Plaque In a mansard in this house at the beginning of 1928, the Comedian Harmonists were founded at the initiative of Harry Frommermann, mit Robert Biberti, Erwin Bootz, Erich Collin, Roman Cycowski, and 'Ari' Leschnikoff. The world-famous vocal ensemble was broken up in 1935 by the forced emigration of the three Jewish members.

Certain brief extensions of these modifiers are easily converted to English:

eine gut gebratene Gans ein lngst vergessenes Buch ein sorgfltig geschriebener Aufsatz ein gut aussehender Mann seine schwer bewaffnete Frau a well-roasted goose a long-forgotten book a carefully-written essay a good-looking man his heavily-armed wife

But German permits far greater extensions. Take the following phrase:
der eben jetzt auf Bahnsteig 2 einfahrende Zug

A literal translation might read: "the just now at Platform 2 arriving train," which is of course not a permitted structure. Rather, we need to turn to a relative clause: "the train that is just now arriving at Platform 2."

Or, to take a clause from Kafka's Das Urteil:

wie der Freund bei seinen immer seltener werdenden Besuchen klagte

To translate that phrase, one could finesse the werdende: "as the friend complained during his increasingly infrequent visits". But here, too, a relative clause might be called for: "as the friend complained during his visits, which were becoming increasingly infrequent." Some further such examples:

Tattoo Removal Here Body Esthetics [name of a firm] offers a convenient alternative to the surgical removal of tattoos. Tattoos can be removed particularly gently, without scarring, with the help of this laser, which was especially developed for the purpose. Ein einmal in der Schule auswendig gelerntes Gedicht vergisst man schnell. A poem that was memorized once in school is soon forgotten. Die rztin konnte dem alten, schon seit Jahren an Rheumatismus leidenden Mann endlich helfen. The doctor was able to help the old man who had already been suffering from rheumatism for years. "die sorgsam auf der kleinen Nussbaumkommode ausgebreiteten Gegenstnde" [from Gerhart Hauptmann's Bahnwrter Thiel] the objects that were carefully spread out on the small walnut chest of drawers

"Ein von Natur oder durch Geistesknechtschaft, gelehrten Luxus und Eitelkeit erschlaffter und gekrmmter Charakter wird sich nie zum Idealismus erheben." [quotation from Fichte] A character that has grown flaccid and bent from nature or through intellectual servitude, learned luxury and vanity will never raise itself to idealism. "Eine Lehrerin verstt gegen die durch das Schulgesetz auferlegte Dienstpflicht, wenn sie in der Schule aus erkennbar religisen Grnden eine Kopfbedeckung trgt."1 A teacher violates her official obligations that have been imposed by the laws on education when she wears a headscarf for recognizably religious reasons. "Die am spten Abend nach Schlieung der Wahllokale im polnischen Nachrichtensender TVN 24 verffentlichten Prognosen" 2 The forecast that was announced on the Polish news station TVN 24 late in the evening after the closing of the polling stations "Von der Trgheit der Materie, dieser dem Tanze entgegenstrebendsten aller Eigenschaften, wissen sie nichts." [from Kleist's ber das Marionettentheater] Of matter's inertia, this quality that more than any other works against the dance, they know nothing.

Note again that an extended adjective that has been formed from a present participle tends to lead to a relative clause in the active voice:
in den Arterien langsam flieendes Blut blood (that is) slowly flowing in the arteries

Or, to take another example from Kafka's Das Urteil

"Er hatte gerade einen Brief an einen sich im Ausland befindenden Jugendfreund beendet." He had just finished a letter to a friend from his youth who was living abroad.
On the other hand, past participles, at least those that have been constructed from transitive verbs, tend to elicitpassive constructions:

In the house next door, Am Kupfergraben 4a, which was destroyed in WWII, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel lived from 1818-1831. The main representative of German Idealism from 1818 Professor of Philosophy at the University of Berlin. die im Krieg zerstrte Kirche the church that was destroyed in the war

Past participles that have been constructed from intransitive verbs, however, tend to indicate an activity that has previously been performed by the modified noun:

Er war ein leider viel zu frh gestorbener Komponist. He was a composer who unfortunately died much too early. Lsst sich hart gewordenes Marzipan noch verarbeiten? Can marzipan that has gotten hard still be worked with? Sie ist eine durch Dit und Fitnesstraining jung gebliebene Frau. She is a woman who has stayed young through diet and exercise. Es gibt noch ein paar offen gebliebene Fragen. There are still a few questions that have remained open. Der Einsatz aktiver und gewesener Politiker fr private Interessen wird

zusehends dreister.

"Are you just stupid?!" Answer-Library: The largest collection to be found on the internet of frequently-heard attacks and the snappiest answers to them. The employment of active and previously active politicians for private interests is becoming noticeably more brazen.

But of course the passive voice can be implied by a presentparticipial adjective preceded by zu:
die im Internet zu findende Sammlung Dieses nicht leicht zu lsende Problem knnen wir heute nicht besprechen. Dieses allerdings gehrte schon zu den vom Hungern berhaupt nicht zu trennenden Verdchtigungen [from Kafka's Ein Hungerknstler]. the collection that is to be found in the internet Today we cannot discuss this problem, which is not easily resolved. This belonged, however, to the suspicions that were not to be separated from the profession of fasting.

"Ordinary" adjectives, not just participial ones, can also be the basis of extended modifiers, as with wichtig in the following example:
Die spter fr die Atomforschung so wichtige Entdeckung blieb zuerst unbeachtet. This discovery, which would later be so important for atomic research, remained at first unnoticed.

Or a different example, using erkennbar:

Obstacles that are discernible too late; Drivers are not liable in an accident. Drivers are not liable when obstacles on the autobahn are discernible too late. Someone, for example, who fails to see a tire lying on the autobahn in the dark until it is too late and causes an accident, does not have to pay damages.