des Pudels Kern

Literally, ‘the poodle’s core’. A quote from Faust, Part One: a black poodle follows Faust home and then transforms into a wandering scholar (but is actually Mephistopheles in disguise). Faust exclaims “Das war also des Pudels Kern” (“So that was the poodle’s core, i.e. so that was what was going on inside the poodle”).

• IPA^(key): /dɛs ˈpuːdl̩s ˈkɛrn/
• Hyphenation: des Pu‧dels Kern

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des Pudels Kern m

1. the crux of the matter, the gist of the matter, the heart of the matter