Link Centre Dictionary

German

ger·man

UK/ˈd͡ʒɜː.mən/ US/ˈd͡ʒɝ.mən/ common slang uk us
adjective (2) noun (2)

adjective

1.

of or pertaining to or characteristic of Germany or its people or language

  • “German philosophers”
  • “German universities”
  • “German literature”
2.

of a more or less German nature; somewhat German

  • “Germanic peoples”
  • “his Germanic nature”
  • “formidable volumes Teutonic in their thoroughness”
Synonyms

noun

1.
2.

Origin

From Latin Germānus, Germānī (“the peoples of Germānia”), as distinct from Gauls (in the writings of Caesar and Tacitus), and of uncertain ultimate origin (possibly Celtic/Gaulish). Not related to german (“closely related”) or germane (from the Latin adjective germānus, through Old French). Attested since at least 1520. Replaced the older terms Almain and Dutch (from Proto-Germanic *þiudiskaz) in English. Besides cognates of German, Almain, and Dutch, two other categories of words for the Germans in other languages are cognates of Saxon and descendants of Proto-Slavic *němьcь; see those entries for more. The surname is generally from the noun, though sometimes confused with Herman, Hermann under Russian influence. As a German surname, Americanized from Germann. Compare Germán, Germain, Jerman.

Phrases

  • brother german
  • Central German Terms derived from German (adjective)
  • cousin german
  • German Autumn Terms derived from German (adjective)
  • German bearded iris Terms derived from German (adjective)
  • German Bight Terms derived from German (adjective)
  • German biscuit Terms derived from German (adjective)
  • German bit Terms derived from German (adjective)
  • German brass Terms derived from German (adjective)
  • German carp Terms derived from German (adjective)
  • High German Terms derived from German (common noun)
  • Pennsylvania German Terms derived from German (common noun)

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

Pertaining to

Parts

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.