No. 6,694 in German
ertappte
"Erstappte" is the simple past form of "ertappen," meaning "caught" or "caught in the act" in English.
In a sentence
Die Polizei ertappte die Diebe auf frischer Tat.
The police caught the thieves red-handed.
In this sentence, 'ertappte' is used as the past tense of 'ertappen' which means 'caught in the act' or 'apprehended while committing an offense.'
Maria ertappte sich dabei, wie sie den ganzen Tag träumte.
Maria caught herself daydreaming all day.
Here, 'ertappte' is reflexive and means 'caught herself,' highlighting an action Maria recognized about herself.
Der Lehrer ertappte den Schüler beim Abschreiben.
The teacher caught the student cheating.
'Ertappte' is used to infer that the teacher discovered the student engaged in wrongdoing.
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