Skip to content

Haftbefehl

arrest warrant

noun HAHFT-be-fehl Rare
People & Society Crime

Usage Note

Haftbefehl is an arrest warrant, compounding Haft (custody) and Befehl (order). A judge issues it: einen Haftbefehl erlassen. A European arrest warrant is a Europaeischer Haftbefehl. When executed, the person is taken into Untersuchungshaft (remand).

Examples

"Der Richter erliess einen Haftbefehl gegen den Fluechtigen."

Natural Translation

The judge issued an arrest warrant against the fugitive.

Literal Translation

The judge issued an arrest-warrant against the fugitive.

Free starter pack

Building your German vocabulary?

Get the 100 most common German words as a free PDF — one email, no spam.

Explore German by topic