Gretchen is a female given name of German origin, most prevalent in the United States. It is a diminutive form of Margareta, meaning "pearl." The name gained popularity due to its association with a major character in Goethe's Faust (1808). In German, the term "Gretchenfrage" ("question by Gretchen") is an idiom for a direct question that aims at the core of a problem, revealing the intentions and mindset of the questioned. This term is derived from the character in Faust. In German-speaking cou...