sonst

German

Etymology

From Middle High German sunst, sust, sus, from Old High German sus (“thus”), from Proto-West Germanic *sus, from *swā (“so”), formally related to Proto-West Germanic *þus (“thus”). Cognate with Hunsrik sunst, Old Saxon sus (Middle Low German süs), archaic Dutch zonst (“otherwise”), Alemannic German sus and suscht.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /zɔnst/ (official standard)
• IPA^(key): /zɔns/ (generally before a consonant; colloquially also in pausa)

• Audio

  (file)

Adverb

sonst

1. otherwise (under different circumstances)

   Synonyms: andernfalls, ansonsten

   Beeil dich, sonst kommen wir zu spät.

   Hurry up, otherwise we'll be late.

2. normally, usually (as opposed to a particular case)

   Synonyms: andernfalls, normalerweise

   Ich trinke sonst nicht so viel.

   I don't normally drink so much.

3. (often with noch) else

   Synonyms: weiter, darüber hinaus

   Sonst noch etwas?

   Anything else?

   Was soll es sonst sein?

   What else would it be?

4. (colloquial) so; then; consecutive, but directed against an explicit or implicit alternative

   Synonyms: also, dann

   Wenn wir jetzt losgehen, sind wir eh zu spät. Sonst lass uns morgen noch mal wiederkommen.

   If we go there now, we’ll be late anyway. So [let’s not do that but instead] let’s come back again tomorrow.

   Wir gehen grad in die Stadt. Also, wenn du Lust hast... sonst komm doch mit!

   We’re headed for the city. So, if you’re interested... [maybe you’re not, but if you are] then come along!

Derived terms

Derived terms

• ansonsten
• sonstig
• sonstwann
• sonstwas
• sonstwer
• sonstwie
• sonstwo
• sonstwohin

Further reading

• “sonst” in Duden online
• “sonst” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• Friedrich Kluge (1883) “sonst”, in John Francis Davis, transl., Etymological Dictionary of the German Language, published 1891

Plautdietsch

Adverb

sonst

1. otherwise