feige

cowardly

adjective FY-ge Less Common

Origin: Old High German feigi (doomed)

Usage Note

feige is the everyday word for cowardice, the opposite of mutig. A coward is ein Feigling. It carries strong moral disapproval: ein feiger Angriff (a cowardly attack). Note the final -e is part of the stem, so it inflects normally.

Examples

"Es war feige, sich einfach davonzuschleichen."

Natural Translation

It was cowardly to simply sneak away.

Literal Translation

It was cowardly, oneself simply away-to-sneak.

Related Words

Explore German by topic

GermanNow

German Modal Verbs: Können, Müssen, Wollen and More

German modal verbs put the modal in position 2 and the real verb at the end. Master können, müssen, wollen and the rest with charts and clear examples.

June 5, 2026 5 min read

GermanNow

German Cases Explained Simply (4 Cases)

German has four cases, and each answers one question: wer, wen, wem, wessen. Learn nominative, accusative, dative, and genitive without drowning in charts.

June 5, 2026 6 min read

GermanNow

Der, Die, Das: Rules to Guess German Gender

German noun gender rules made simple: check the suffix first, then meaning. Endings like -ung, -chen, and -ling predict der, die, or das with ~90% accuracy.

June 5, 2026 6 min read

GermanNow

Du vs. Sie: When to Use Each in German

Use Sie with strangers, elders, and at work; use du with friends, family, kids, and peers. Here's how to pick the right German you every time.

June 5, 2026 6 min read