Beil

See also: béil

German

Etymology

From Middle High German bīl, bīhel, from Old High German bīhal (whence also Bavarian Beichl),[1] attested (in the form witubil) since the 8th century.

Conflated early on with Proto-Germanic *bilją and its descendants (German Bille). (Kluge mentioned that, in his day, a relationship to Bicke / Middle High German bicke (“pickaxe”) — compare Old English becca (“pickaxe”) — could not be ruled out.)

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /baɪ̯l/
  • Audio(file)
  • Rhymes: -aɪ̯l

Noun

Beil n (genitive Beils or Beiles, plural Beile, diminutive Beilchen n)

  1. axe, hatchet

Declension
Declension of Beil
singular plural
indef. def. noun def. noun
nominative ein das Beil die Beile
genitive eines des Beiles,
Beils		 der Beile
dative einem dem Beil,
Beile1		 den Beilen
accusative ein das Beil die Beile
1Now uncommon, see notes

Derived terms

Further reading
  • Beil in Duden online

References
  1. Beil in Kluge's Etymological Dictionary of the German Language, 1891

Pennsylvania German

Etymology

From Middle High German bīl, bīhel, from Old High German bīhal. Compare German Beil, Dutch bijl.

Noun

Beil n (plural Beile)

  1. hatchet
This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.