erübrigen
Translation
to make unnecessary, to spare, to save
Examples
Diese Frage erübrigt sich.
This question is now unnecessary.
Er konnte etwas Zeit für mich erübrigen.
He was able to spare some time for me.
Grammar Patterns
sich erübrigen to become unnecessary, to be superfluous Any further discussion is unnecessary.
((sth.)) erübrigen to spare (sth., e.g. time, money) I'm afraid I can't spare any time for that.
Similar Words
sich erübrigen: to become superfluous, to be unnecessary; etw. erübrigen: to spare, to find (time/money)
Etymology
Composed of the prefix 'er-' and 'übrig' (remaining, left over). It conveys the sense of 'making something into a leftover', hence 'making it unnecessary' or 'sparing' it.
Memory Tips
Focus on the root 'übrig' (left over). 'erübrigen' is the action of creating a 'leftover' amount of something, like time or money, so you can 'spare' it.