zusammen

From Middle High German zesamene, zesamne, zesamen (“together”), from Old High German zisamane (“together”). From zu- (“to”) +‎ sammen (“together”) (these days, sammen is only found in compounds), form Proto-Germanic *samana (“together”), from Proto-Indo-European *sem- (“together, one”). Cognate with Middle English to-samen (“together”). Related to obsolete English sam (“together”), whose earlier form was samen.

Dutch tezamen (“together”) has been formed in a similar fashion, with its contracted form being samen and its ancestral form tsamen. Also cognate with Scots samin (“together”), Danish sammen (“together”), Swedish samman (“together”).

• IPA^(key): /tsuˈzamən/, [tsuˈzamən], [tsuˈzamm̩] (standard)
• IPA^(key): /tsəˈzamən/ (colloquial variant)
• IPA^(key): /ˈtsam(ən)/ (colloquial in Bavaria, Austria)

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• Hyphenation: zu‧sam‧men

zusammen

1. together
   • 1903, Fanny zu Reventlow, Ellen Olestjerne, in Franziska Gräfin zu Reventlow: Gesammelte Werke, Albert Langen, page 526:

     Trotz all dieser Bitternisse war es noch ein wunderbar schöner Sommer, den die drei Freunde zusammen verlebten.

     Despite all these bitter feelings, it was yet a wonderfully beautiful summer, which the three friends spent together.

• (all restricted to certain contexts)
  • beieinander
  • gemeinsam
  • miteinander
  • vereint
  • zueinander

• getrennt
• gegeneinander

• zusammen in Duden online