East German
16
4.6
- adjective
:
de Alemania del Este
- Many East German citizens protested for greater freedom before reunification in 1990.
- East German communist
- East German government
- East German society
Examples
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Anderson pointed out pressures felt by the East German government due to the growing demand for American jazz in the communist state.
Academic text (2015) -
With repeated calls for change on the streets and the protestors growing ever more confident, time is running out for the East German government.
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Safety is a concern in some East German industries.
Academic text (1991) -
Behind it, the East German soldiers tried to stop the tide.
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Sounds like the East Germans are fighting for a place at our table.
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The East German regime was less successful in its attempts to control the Catholic Church.
Academic text (1999) -
She came here a poor, little East German refugee.
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At the same time, increasingly greater numbers of East German tourists arrived in Hungary and sought safe passage there to the West.
Academic text (1999) -
The East German states are to repay one-half of the East German debt that united Germany was assuming.
Academic text (1991) -
Officials in Vienna note that 237 East Germans have reached Austria via Hungary.
Academic text (1990)
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'relating to East Germany or its people' is directly derivable from combining 'East' (a region/directional qualifier) with 'German' (nationality), so a learner who knows both words can infer it refers to people or things from the eastern part of Germany. This regional/national compound follows common cross‑linguistic patterns and is non‑idiomatic, making it transparent to a B1 learner (though precise historical dates may need additional context).
Etymology
East German as an adjective describes something that comes from East Germany, like an official, a product, or a custom from that former country behind the Berlin Wall. The parts East and German show it is 'relating to or typical of that former country'.