horn
English
Etymology
From Middle English horn, horne, from Old English horn, from Proto-Germanic *hurną (compare West Frisian hoarn, Dutch hoorn, Low German Hoorn, horn, German Horn, Danish and Swedish horn, Gothic 𐌷𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌽 (haurn)), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱerh₂-, (compare Breton kern (“horn”), Latin cornū, Ancient Greek κέρας (kéras), Proto-Slavic *sьrna, Old Church Slavonic sьrna (sĭrna, “roedeer”), Hittite [script needed] (surna, “horn”)[script needed], Persian سور (sur), Sanskrit शृङ्ग (śṛṅga, “horn”)).
Pronunciation
Noun
horn (countable and uncountable, plural horns)
- (countable) A hard growth of keratin that protrudes from the top of the head of certain animals, usually paired.
- Any similar real or imaginary growth or projection such as the elongated tusk of a narwhal, the eyestalk of a snail, the pointed growth on the nose of a rhinoceros, or the hornlike projection on the head of a demon or similar.
- An antler.
- (uncountable) The hard substance from which animals' horns are made, sometimes used by man as a material for making various objects.
- Synonym: keratin
- an umbrella with a handle made of horn
- An object whose shape resembles a horn, such as cornucopia, the point of an anvil, or a vessel for gunpowder or liquid.
- Thomson
- The moon / Wears a wan circle round her blunted horns.
- Mason
- horns of mead and ale
- The high pommel of a saddle; also, either of the projections on a lady's saddle for supporting the leg.
- (architecture) The Ionic volute.
- (nautical) The outer end of a crosstree; also, one of the projections forming the jaws of a gaff, boom, etc.
- (carpentry) A curved projection on the fore part of a plane.
- One of the projections at the four corners of the Jewish altar of burnt offering.
- Bible, 1 Kings ii. 28
- Joab […] caught hold on the horns of the altar
- Bible, 1 Kings ii. 28
- Thomson
- (countable) Any of several musical wind instruments.
- (countable, music) An instrument resembling a musical horn and used to signal others.
- hunting horn
- (countable, automotive) A loud alarm, especially one on a motor vehicle.
- (chiefly sports) A sound signaling the expiration of time.
- The shot was after the horn and therefore did not count.
- (countable) A conical device used to direct waves.
- Synonym: funnel
- antenna horn
- loudspeaker horn
- (informal, music, countable) Generally, any brass wind instrument.
- (slang, countable, from the horn-shaped earpieces of old communication systems that used air tubes) A telephone.
- Synonyms: blower (UK), dog and bone (Cockney rhyming slang), phone
- Get him on the horn so that we can have a discussion about this.
- (uncountable, vulgar, slang, definite article) An erection of the penis.
- (countable, geography) A peninsula or crescent-shaped tract of land.
- Synonym: peninsula
- to navigate around the horn
- (countable) A diacritical mark that may be attached to the top right corner of the letters o and u when writing in Vietnamese, thus forming ơ and ư.
- (botany) An incurved, tapering and pointed appendage found in the flowers of the milkweed (Asclepias).
Usage notes
When used alone to refer to an instrument, horn can mean either hunting horn or French horn, depending on context. Other instruments are identified by specific adjectives such as English horn or basset horn.
Translations
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.
Verb
horn (third-person singular simple present horns, present participle horning, simple past and past participle horned)
Derived terms
- acoustic horn
- Alpine horn
- alto horn
- baritone horn
- basset horn
- Big Horn County
- blowhorn
- blow one's horn
- bullhorn
- English horn
- foghorn
- French horn
- have the horn
- hornbag
- hornbeam
- hornbill
- hornbook
- horned
- horner
- horn in
- hornist
- hornless
- Horn of Africa
- horn of plenty
- hornpipe
- horn pipe
- horn-rimmed
- horn-rims
- horns and halo effect
- horn violin
- hornworm
- hornwort
- horny
- lock horns
- on the horns of a dilemma
- post horn, posthorn
- pull in one's horns
- saxhorn
- shoehorn
- take the bull by the horns
- toot one's own horn
- Vienna horn
- Vladimir horn
Danish
Inflection
Faroese
Etymology
From Old Norse horn, from Proto-Norse ᚺᛟᚱᚾᚨ (horna), from Proto-Germanic *hurną, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱer-.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /hɔtn/
- Rhymes: -ɔtn
Noun
Declension
Declension of horn | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
n3 | singular | plural | ||
indefinite | definite | indefinite | definite | |
nominative | horn | hornið | horn | hornini |
accusative | horn | hornið | horn | hornini |
dative | horni | horninum | hornum | hornunum |
genitive | horns | hornsins | horna | hornanna |
Icelandic
Etymology
From Old Norse horn, from Proto-Norse ᚺᛟᚱᚾᚨ (horna), from Proto-Germanic *hurną, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱer-.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /hɔrtn/
- Rhymes: -ɔrtn
Noun
horn n (genitive singular horns, nominative plural horn)
Declension
Derived terms
- hornhraði m (“angular velocity”)
- hornafleiða
- hornamál
- hornfjarlægð
- horngráða
- hornhröðun
- hornmál
Middle English
Etymology
From Old English horn, from Proto-Germanic *hurną, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱr̥h₂nós (with change in gender).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈhɔrn/
Noun
horn (plural hornes)
- A horn (keratinous growth on one's head):
- A jutting or projecting extremity of something, especially one resembling a horn:
- One of the two points of a moon that is less than half waxed.
- One of the two points of a women's hairstyle involving projecting points.
- (rare, anatomy) A horn-shaped bodily passage or chamber.
- A horn (gently curved musical instrument)
- Any other hard bodily extension in humans or beasts (e.g. a claw)
- A horn-shaped container, especially one used like a glass.
- (rare) A half or section of an army, troop, or band.
- (rare) The eyestalk of a gastropod or an analogous projection.
- (rare) Bovids which are horned as a collective.
References
- “horn (n.)” in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-12-08.
Norwegian Bokmål
Etymology
From Old Norse horn, from Proto-Norse ᚺᛟᚱᚾᚨ (horna), from Proto-Germanic *hurną, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱer-.
Noun
horn n (definite singular hornet, indefinite plural horn, definite plural horna or hornene)
- (zoology) horn
- (music) horn
- (automotive, rail transport) horn (warning device)
Derived terms
Norwegian Nynorsk
Etymology
From Old Norse horn, from Proto-Norse ᚺᛟᚱᚾᚨ (horna), from Proto-Germanic *hurną, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱer-.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /hʊrn/, /hɔrn/
Noun
horn n (definite singular hornet, indefinite plural horn, definite plural horna)
- (zoology) horn
- (music) horn
- (automotive, rail transport) horn (warning device)
Derived terms
- hornhinne
- ta tyren ved horna
Old English
Etymology
From Proto-Germanic *hurną, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱer- (“horn, head, top”). Compare Old Frisian horn (West Frisian hoarn), Old Saxon horn (Low German Hoorn, horn), Dutch hoorn, Old High German horn (German Horn), Old Norse horn (Danish and Swedish horn), Gothic 𐌷𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌽 (haurn).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /horn/
Declension
Old High German
Etymology
From Proto-Germanic *hurną, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱer-. Cognates include also Old Saxon horn, Old English horn, Old Norse horn, Gothic 𐌷𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌽 (haurn).
Old Norse
Etymology
From Proto-Norse ᚺᛟᚱᚾᚨ (horna), from Proto-Germanic *hurną, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱer- or Proto-Indo-European *ḱerh₂-. Cognates include Old English horn (English horn, Old Frisian horn (West Frisian hoarn), Old Saxon horn (Low German Hoorn, horn), Dutch hoorn, Old High German horn (German Horn), Gothic 𐌷𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌽 (haurn).
Noun
Declension
References
- horn in Geir T. Zoëga (1910) A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press
Old Saxon
Etymology
From Proto-Germanic *hurną, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱer-. Cognates include also Old English horn, Old Frisian horn, Old High German horn, Old Norse horn, Gothic 𐌷𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌽 (haurn).
Swedish
Etymology
From Old Norse horn, from Proto-Norse ᚺᛟᚱᚾᚨ (horna), from Proto-Germanic *hurną, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱerh₂-.
Pronunciation
Audio (file)
Noun
horn n
Declension
Declension of horn | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Plural | |||
Indefinite | Definite | Indefinite | Definite | |
Nominative | horn | hornet | horn | hornen |
Genitive | horns | hornets | horns | hornens |
Related terms
- bockhorn n (“goat's horn”)
- ymnighetshorn n (“cornucopia, horn of plenty”)
- bilhorn
- dryckeshorn
- hornboskap
- hornmusik
- hornprydd
- kruthorn
- valthorn
- älghorn