der Strich
Translation
line, stroke, dash, red-light district
Examples
Er zog einen geraden Strich.
He drew a straight line.
Mach einen Strich unter die Vergangenheit.
Draw a line under the past.
Das war ein Strich durch die Rechnung.
That threw a spanner in the works.
Grammar Patterns
((et4)) ziehen/machen to draw a line He drew a line on the paper.
einen Strich durch die Rechnung machen ((sb.dat)) to thwart someone's plans The weather thwarted our plans.
Similar Words
Linie (line), Strichpunkt (semicolon)
Etymology
Related to the verb 'streichen' (to stroke, to strike).
Memory Tips
Think of 'striking' a line with a pen, or a 'stroke' of a brush. It's the physical action of making a line.