An Open Letter to the Confusing German Language

Dear German language,

It's very confusing when one of your words has two entirely unrelated meanings, both of which can be equally plausible in context.

I do understand that this can happen in a language that mostly creates new words by building them out of existing building blocks ("Oops, we already used that prefix with that verb! ...Oh, let's just use it again, maybe no one will notice").

But it can be inconvenient, when, for example, one is translating an academic article on landscape architecture, and discovers that the adjective "bebaut" could just as easily mean either "covered with buildings" or "covered with plants." Because, of course, "bauen" is to construct and "anbauen" is to plant.

Of course.

Incidentally, though, dear German language, I can't help finding it charming how – when you're not confusing us with vague prefixes – you're otherwise so compulsively specific! Only you would invent the word "Liegewiese" ("to lie" + "lawn") out of a need to clearly differentiate public lawns on which people are allowed to lie from public lawns on which, for example, playing soccer would be acceptable.

Sincerely,
a fan