Warum ich mir für GZSZ die Haare abrasierte
B2 German listening practice · German · Curated for upper-intermediate learners
What does “sich dazu durchringen” mean in German?
The actor plays a character going through chemotherapy, and he had to decide: fake the shaved head on screen, or actually shave his own hair. He chose to go through with it for real. “Sich dazu durchringen” captures exactly that moment — when someone finally overcomes their own hesitation and commits to something hard. The word carries real emotional weight.
Spoken line: “Und hat sich dann dazu durchgerungen zu sagen, nee, dann würd ich lieber aktive Entscheidung treffen” — “And he then brought himself to say, no, I’d rather make an active choice.” It signals a decision made against real inner resistance. More examples: “Sie hat sich dazu durchgerungen, zu kündigen.” (She finally brought herself to quit.) · “Wir konnten uns nicht durchringen, das Haus zu verkaufen.” (We couldn’t bring ourselves to sell the house.) · “Nach langem Zögern rang er sich durch.” (After hesitating a long time, he made up his mind.) Often paired with “dazu” pointing to the hard thing, and it usually marks a slow, heavy choice rather than a quick one.
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Source: wordfreq 3.1.1 (general) · SUBTLEX-DE 2011 (spoken). Buckets approximate; exact ranks not stored.