/das ˈiːˌtʏp͡fl̩çən/ lit. ‘the dot on the i’
German idiom, everyday. Something extra that makes a good thing even better.
How do people use Das i-Tüpfelchen
?
Everyday German, at home in sports reports, ads and reviews, and German Wiktionary’s example is snow on Christmas Eve as the i-Tüpfelchen of a perfect Christmas. It usually comes as “das ist das i-Tüpfelchen” or “das i-Tüpfelchen auf etwas” (on something). It can also be bitter: one of Wiktionary’s quotes calls a final defeat “das i-Tüpfelchen einer völlig verkorksten Saison” (the dot on the i of a totally botched season).
Also said das Tüpfelchen auf dem i, der Punkt auf dem i, das i-Tüpferl
Das i-Tüpfelchen
in real sentences
-
Das alte Schloss im Mondlicht zu sehen war schon etwas ganz Besonderes, aber das i-Tüpfelchen waren die in der Dämmerung umherfliegenden Fledermäuse.
Seeing the old castle in the moonlight was already something very special, but the icing on the cake was the bats flying around in the dusk.
Tatoeba, sentence by raggione, CC BY 2.0 FR
-
Das Schwimmbecken im Garten war das Tüpfelchen auf dem i.
The swimming pool in the garden was the icing on the cake.
Tatoeba, sentence by Pfirsichbaeumchen, translation by sundown, CC BY 2.0 FR
Where does Das i-Tüpfelchen
come from?
A Tüpfelchen is a tiny dot, and the dot is the last stroke you add when you write an i. The Redensarten-Index explains the idiom through handwriting: people writing fast often skip the dot, so putting it on shows care and a job finished properly. We found no date for when the figurative use began.
Mistakes learners make with Das i-Tüpfelchen
Confusing it with “bis aufs i-Tüpfelchen”, which means down to the very last detail (“bis aufs i-Tüpfelchen genau”, exact to the dot). That phrase is about precision, while “das i-Tüpfelchen” is the bonus on top.
Other German idioms like Das i-Tüpfelchen
Spot a mistake in Das i-Tüpfelchen
?
Send a correction, or a sentence you’d actually say with it. Everything is read before anything on this page changes.