Ungeziefer
German
Etymology
From early modern German ungeziffer, Ungezieffer, a variant form of Middle High German ungezibere. These pertain to Old High German zebar (“sacrificial animal”) and hence originally meant “animals unsuitable for sacrifice”, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *tībrą (“offering, sacrifice, victim”). The word is rarely attested in medieval texts due to suppression of words reminiscent of heathen practices, but must have survived in lower registers.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈʊnɡəˌt͡siːfɐ/, /ˈʊŋɡə-/
Audio (file)
Noun
Ungeziefer n (genitive Ungeziefers, plural Ungeziefer)
- (uncountable) vermin; pests; restricted to small animals, usually insects or spiders, sometimes also mice, etc.
- Der Küchenschrank saß voller Motten und dieses Ungeziefer war in alle Dosen und Tüten eingedrungen.
- The kitchen cupboard was full of moths and these vermin had got into all containers and bags.
- Der Küchenschrank saß voller Motten und dieses Ungeziefer war in alle Dosen und Tüten eingedrungen.
- (countable, rare) a vermin animal; a despised creature
- Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis (1915):
- Als Gregor Samsa eines Morgens aus unruhigen Träumen erwachte, fand er sich in seinem Bett zu einem ungeheuren Ungeziefer verwandelt.
- As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into an enormous insect.
- Als Gregor Samsa eines Morgens aus unruhigen Träumen erwachte, fand er sich in seinem Bett zu einem ungeheuren Ungeziefer verwandelt.
- Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis (1915):
Declension
Declension of Ungeziefer
singular | plural | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
indef. | def. | noun | def. | noun | |
nominative | ein | das | Ungeziefer | die | Ungeziefer |
genitive | eines | des | Ungeziefers | der | Ungeziefer |
dative | einem | dem | Ungeziefer | den | Ungeziefern |
accusative | ein | das | Ungeziefer | die | Ungeziefer |
See also
Further reading
- Ungeziefer in Duden online
This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.