# An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Z (full text)

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Z.
Zacken, masculine, ‘point, peak, prong, tooth (of a comb),’ from the equivalent Middle High German (Middle German) zacke, masculine and feminine; properly a Middle German and Low German word. Compare Dutch tak, masculine, ‘twig, branch, point,’ North Frisian tâk, ‘point,’ to which Old Icelandic tág, masculine, ‘willow twig,’ English tack, are also probably allied. The latter are perhaps primitively cognate with Sanscrit daçâ, ‘fringe,’ or with Greek δοκός, ‘beam’ (Teutonic takko-, Aryan dokno-?). It is uncertain whether Zinke is allied.
zag, adjective ‘faint-hearted, shy, irresolute,’ from Middle High German zage, Old High German zago, zag, adjective, ‘faint-hearted, cowardly.’ A derivative of Modern High German zagen, ‘to lack courage, hesitate’ (compare wach and wachen), Middle High German zagen, Old High German zagên. It is not probable that the word was borrowed, in spite of the few cognates of the Teutonic stem tag. This is probably derived from a Gothic *at-agan (1st singular *ataga, equivalent to Irish ad-agur, ‘to be afraid’) by apocope of the initial vowel; at is probably a prefix Gothic agan, ‘I am afraid,’ is based on the widely diffused Old Teutonic root ag (Aryan agh), ‘to be afraid,’ with which Greek ἄχος, ‘pain, distress,’ is also connected.
Zäh, adjective, ‘tough, viscous, obstinate,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zœhe, Old High German zâhi, adjective; corresponding to Dutch taai, Anglo-Saxon tôh, English tough; Gothic *tâhu (from *tanhu-) has to be assumed. With the Teutonic root tanh, ‘to hold firmly together,’ are also connected Anglo-Saxon getęnge, ‘close to, oppressing,’ and Old Saxon bitęngi, ‘pressing.’ Zange appears on account of its meaning to belong to a different root.
Zahl, feminine, ‘number, figure, cipher,’ from Middle High German zal, feminine, ‘number, crowd, troop, narrative, speech,’ Old High German zala, feminine, ‘number’; corresponding to Dutch taal, ‘speech,’ Anglo-Saxon talu, English tale. Allied to zahlen, verb, ‘to count out, pay,’ from Middle High German zaln, Old High German zalôn, ‘to count, reckon, compute’ (Old Saxon talôn), and zählen, verb, ‘to number, count,’ from Middle High German zęln, Old High German zęllen (from *zaljan), weak verb, ‘to count, reckon, enumerate, narrate, inform, say.’ Compare Dutch tellen, ‘to count, reckon, have regard to,’ Anglo-Saxon tęllan, English to tell. From the originally strong verbal root tal, Gothic talzjan, ‘to instruct,’ is also derived. In non-Teutonic there is no certain trace of a root dal, ‘to enumerate.’ See Zoll.
​ zahm, adjective, ‘tame, tractable, docile,’ from the equivalent Middle High German and Old High German zam; corresponding to Dutch tam, Anglo-Saxon tǫm, ‘E. tame, and Old Icelandic tamr, ‘tame, domesticated.’ Allied to zähmen, verb, ‘to tame, domesticate, break in, check,’ from Middle High German zęmen (zęmmen), Old High German zęmmen (from *zamjan), weak verb, ‘to tame’; corresponding to Gothic gatamjan, Old Icelandic temja, Dutch temmen, ‘to tame.’ The connection between the Teutonic cognates and Latin domare, Greek δαμᾶν, Sanscrit damáy (damany), ‘to subdue, compel,’ is undoubted. The relation of these cognates based on dom, ‘to subdue,’ to a similar root appearing in Modern High German ziemen (Teutonic root tem, ‘to be suitable, be fitted’) is obscure. Old High German zęmmen, ‘to tame,’ looks as if it were a causative of Old High German zëman, ‘to be adapted, suit excellently.’ In that case it is remarkable that the primary verb has been preserved in Teutonic only; but was it perhaps deduced from the causative? (see wecken).
Zahn, masculine, ‘tooth,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zan, zant (d), Old High German zan, zand, masculine; common to Teutonic and also to Aryan. Compare Old Saxon and Dutch tand, Anglo-Saxon tôþ (from *tanþ), English tooth, Gothic tunþus. Teutonic tanþ-, tunþ- (from Aryan dont-, dnt-), is primitively allied to Latin dens (stem dent-), Greek ὁδούς (stem ὀδοντ-), Sanscrit dat (nominative singular dan), danta, Lithuanian dantìs, Old Irish dét, ‘tooth.’ The Aryan primitive stem dont- (dnt-) is in form the present participle of the root ed, ‘to eat,’ with apocope of the initial vowel (see essen); hence Zahn is literally ‘the eating organ’ (for the Teutonic suffix of the present participle -and-, -und-, see Feind, Freund, and Heiland). To this word Zinne is allied.
Zähre, feminine, ‘tear,’ properly neuter plural of Middle High German zaher (*zacher), Old High German zahar (zahhar), masculine; the form with ch in Middle High German is inferred from the derivative zęchern, zachern, ‘to weep’ (Old High German hhr from hr). Compare Anglo-Saxon teár (from *teahor, with the variant tœhher), English tear, Old Icelandic tár (for *tahr-), Gothic tagr, neuter, ‘tear.’ A primitively Teutonic word in the form dakru, which is presupposed by Greek δάκρυ, Latin lacruma (for earlier dacruma), Old Irish dacr (dér), ‘tear.’ The equivalent Sanscrit áçru, if it stands for *daçru, is abnormal.
Zange, feminine, ‘tongs, pincers,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zange, Old High German zanga, feminine; corresponding to Dutch tang, Anglo-Saxon tǫnge, English tongs, and the equivalent Old Icelandic tǫng. The common Teutonic tangô- assumes a pre-Teutonic dankâ-, which is usually connected with the Sanscrit root danç (daç), ‘to bite’ (compare Greek δάκνω); hence Zange, literally ‘biter.’ Compare Old High German zangar, Middle High German zanger, ‘biting, sharp, lively,’ whence Italian tanghero, ‘unpolished, coarse.’
zanken, verb, ‘to quarrel,’ from late Middle High German zanken, zęnken, ‘to dispute’; a remarkably late word, not recorded in the earlier Teutonic periods. Perhaps Middle High German zanke (a variant of Zinke), ‘prong, point,’ is the base of zanken, which must then have meant ‘to be pointed.’
Zapfe, masculine, ‘peg, plug, tap, bung,’ from Middle High German zapfe, masculine, ‘tap, especially in a beer or wine cask’ (also zapfen, ‘to pour out from a tap’), Old High German zapfo, ‘peg, plug.’ Corresponding to North Frisian tâp. Dutch tap, Anglo-Saxon tœppa, English tap, and the equivalent Old Icelandic tappe. From the Teutonic cognates are borrowed the equivalent French tape and Italian zaffo (Spund, on the other hand, was borrowed from Romance). Teutonic tappon- cannot be traced back to the other primitively allied languages; only Zipfel seems to be related to these cognates.
zappeln, verb, ‘to move convulsively, sprawl, flounder,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zappeln. a variant of zabeln, Old High German zabalôn (zappalôn?), ‘to sprawl.’ A specifically High German, probably of recent onomatopoetic origin.
Zarge, feminine, ‘border, edge, setting, groove,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zarge, Old High German zarga, feminine. Corresponding with as change of meaning to Anglo-Saxon and Old Icelandic targa, ‘shield’ (literally ‘shield border’), whence French targe, Italian targa, ‘shield’ (whence Middle High German and Modern High German tartsche, English target, are borrowed). The remoter history of the cognates is obscure.
zart, adjective, ‘tender, soft, fragile, nice,’ from Middle High German and Old High German zart, adjective, ‘dear, beloved, precious, confidential, fine, beautiful’; unknown to the other Old Teutonic dialects. Like the properly equivalent traut, zart appears to be a participle with the suffix to-. Teutonic tar-do, from Aryan dr-tó- (compare satt, tot), is most closely related to the Zend participle dereta, ‘honoured’; compare Sanscrit â-dṛ, ‘to direct one's attention to something.’ The Teutonic word cannot have been borrowed from Latin carus, ‘dear.’
Zaser, feminine, ‘fibre, filament,’ Modern High German only, unknown to the earlier periods (older Modern High German zasel, Swedish zasem). Origin obscure.
Zauber, masculine, ‘charm, enchantment, magic,’ from Middle High German zouber (zouver), Old High German ​zoubar (zoufar), masculine, ‘magic, charm, spell’; compare Dutch tooveren, ‘to enchant,’ Old Icelandic taufr, neuter, ‘magic.’ For the meaning, the corresponding Anglo-Saxon teáfor, ‘vermilion,’ is important; hence Zauber is perhaps literally ‘illusion by means of colour’; others suppose that the runes were marked with vermilion, so that Zauber would mean literally ‘secret or magic writing.’ No cognates of the specifically Teutonic taufro-, taubro- (Aryan root dū̆p, not dū̆bh), have been found.
zaudern, verb, ‘to hesitate, delay, procrastinate,’ allied to Middle High German (Middle German) zûwen (*zûwern), weak verb, ‘to draw,’ which seems like zögern, to be connected with ziehen.
Zaum, masculine, ‘bridle, rein,’ from the equivalent Middle High German and Old High German zoum, masculine; corresponding to Old Saxon tôm, Dutch toom, Old Icelandic taumr, ‘bridle, rein.’ The meaning makes it probable that the word is derived from the Teutonic root tug, tuh, ‘to draw’ (taumo- for *taugmo-, Aryan doukmo-; compare Traum); hence Zaum is literally ‘drawing strap.’
Zaun, masculine, ‘hedge, fence,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zûn, masculine; compare Old Saxon tûn, Dutch tuin, ‘hedge, garden,’ Anglo-Saxon tûn, ‘enclosure, place,’ English town (also dialectic to tine, ‘to hedge in,’ from the equivalent Anglo-Saxon tŷnan), Old Icelandic tún, ‘enclosure, farm.’ Teutonic tû-no- (tû-nu-?) is connected pre-historically with -dûman in Old Keltic names of places (such as Augustodûnum, Lugdûnum); compare Old Irish dún, ‘citadel, town.’ —
Zaunkönig, masculine, ‘wren,’ in Middle High German merely küniclîn, Old High German chuninglî, neuter, ‘little king.’
zausen, verb, ‘to tease (wool, &c.), tug, pull about,’ from Middle High German and Old High German erzûsen, Old High German zirzûsôn, weak verb; compare Middle High German zûsach, ‘brambles.’ Apart from High German the Teutonic root tū̆s (Aryan dū̆s), ‘to tear to pieces,’ does not occur; the comparison with Latin dûmus (from *dū̆smus?), ‘bramble,’ is uncertain.
Zeche, feminine, ‘rotation (of duties), succession, hotel bill, share in a reckoning (at an inn), drinking party (each paying a share), corporation, guild, club,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zëche, feminine (which also means arrangement, association); also in Middle High German zëchen (Old High German *zëhhôn), weak verb, ‘to arrange, prepare, bring about,’ also (late), ‘to run up a score at an inn.’ In Old High German only the word gizëhôn, ‘to arrange, regulate,’ from this stem is found; compare the allied Anglo-Saxon teohhian and teógan (from *tëhhôn, tëhwôn, tëhôn), ‘to arrange, determine, regulate,’ and teoh (hh), ‘company, troop.’ A Teutonic root tē̆hw, tē̆gw (tē̆w), is indicated by Gothic gatêwjan, ‘to ordain,’ têwa, ‘order,’ têwi, ‘troop of fifty men.’ These imply a pre-Teutonic root dē̆g, ‘to arrange, regulate’ (to which Greek δεῖπνον, ‘meal,’ for deqnjom?, is allied). The numerous senses in Middle High German may be easily deduced from the primary meaning.
Zecke, feminine, ‘tick,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zëcke, masculine and feminine; corresponding to Dutch teekt, Anglo-Saxon *tîca (ticia is misspelt for tiica), English tike, tick. From the old West Teutonic tī̆ko, tikko, are derived the equivalent Italian zecca, French tique. Aryan digh- is indicated by Armenian tiz, ‘tick,’ which is probably primitively allied to the Teutonic cognates.
Zeder, feminine, ‘cedar,’ from Middle High German zëder (cêder), masculine; from Greek-Latin cedrus (Old High German cêdarboum).
Zeh, masculine and feminine, ‘toe,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zéhe, Old High German zéha, feminine; corresponding to Dutch teen, Anglo-Saxon tâhœ, tâ, English toe, and the equivalent Old Icelandic tá. Beside the base taihôn, taihwôn (Bavarian zéchen and Swabian zaichen), assumed by these forms, Middle High German and Low German dialects prove the existence of a variant taiwón (from taigwôn, taihwôn); Swiss and Middle Rhenish zêb, zêbe, Franconian and Henneberg. zêwe, Thuringian zîwe. Pre-Teutonic daiqâ-n, ‘toe,’ is usually connected with Greek δάκτυλος (Latin digitus?) ‘finger,’ which, on account of the sounds, is, however, improbable, especially as the Teutonic word is always used in the sense of ‘toe.’
zehn, numeral, ‘ten,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zëhen, (zên), Old High German zëhan; corresponding to Old Saxon tëhan, Dutch tien, Anglo-Saxon tŷn, English ten, Gothic taíhun; common to Aryan in the form dekn; compare Sanscrit dăçan, Greek δέκα, Latin decem, and Old Slovenian desętĭ. —
zehnte, adjective, ‘tenth,’ from Middle High German zëhende (zênde), Old High German zëhando; as substantive ‘a tenth, tithe.’ —
Zehntel, see Teil. Compare also -zig.
zehren, verb, ‘to eat and drink, live, waste,’ from Middle High German zęrn, (verzęrn), ‘to consume, use up’; Old High German firzëran, strong verb, means only ‘to dissolve, destroy, tear’ (compare Winzer). Corresponding to Gothic gataíran, ‘to destroy, annihilate,’ Anglo-Saxon tëran, English to tear; allied to Dutch teren, ‘to consume,’ Old Saxon fartęrian, ‘to annihilate,’ and also to Modern High German zerren and zergen. The Teutonic strong verbal root ter, ‘to tear,’ corresponds to Greek δέρειν, ‘to flay,’ Old Slovenian derą, ‘to tear,’ and the Sanscrit root dar, ‘to burst, fly in pieces or asunder.’
Zeichen, neuter, ‘sign, mark, token, signal, ​symptom, indication,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zeichen, Old High German zeihhan, neuter; corresponding to Old Saxon têkan, Dutch teeken, Anglo-Saxon tâcn, English token, and the equivalent Gothic taikns. A derivative of the Aryan root dī̆g, dī̆k, which appears also in zeihen and zeigen; this root with k is contained further in Anglo-Saxon tœ̂čęan, English to teach (compare the g of Latin dignus, prodigium, and of Greek δεῖγμα). — Derivative zeichnen, verb, ‘to mark, draw, delineate,’ from Middle High German zeichenen, Old High German zeihhanen; literally ‘to furnish with marks.’
Zeidler, masculine, ‘keeper of bees, from the equivalent Middle High German zîdelœre, Old High German zîdalâri, masculine; a derivative of Old High German zîdal-, Middle High German zîdel-, especially in the compound zîdalweida, Middle High German zîdelweide, ‘forest in which bees are kept.’ This zîdal (pre-High German *tîþlo- probably appears also in Low German tielbär, ‘honey-bear’) does not occur in any other Old Teutonic dialect, but it is not necessary on that account to assume a foreign origin for the word. The word is supposed to have come from Slavonic territory, where the keeping of bees is widely spread, being based on Old Slovenian bĭčela, ‘keeper of bees’ (compare Lebkuchen); but this derivation is not quite probable. Its connection with Seidelbast (Middle High German zîdel-, sîdelbast) and Zeiland is equally uncertain.
zeigen, ‘to show, point out, demonstrate,’ from Middle High German zeigen, Old High German zeigôn, strong verb, ‘to show, indicate’; a specifically High German derivative of the Teutonic strong verbal root tī̆h, Modern High German zeihen. The latter comes from Middle High German zîhen, strong verb, ‘to accuse of, depose concerning,’ Old High German zîhan, ‘to accuse'; also Modern High German verzeihen, ‘to pardon,’ Middle High German verzîhen, Old High German frizîhan, ‘to deny, refuse pardon.’ Based on the Aryan strong verbal root dik (for dig see Zeichen); compare Sanscrit diç, ‘to exhibit, produce, direct to,’ Greek δείκνυμι, ‘to show,’ Latin dico, ‘to say.’ The primary meaning of the root is preserved by Zeichen and zeigen, as well as by Gothic gateihan, ‘to announce, narrate, proclaim, say’; compare the compounds Old Saxon aftîhan, Anglo-Saxon ofteón, ‘to deny.’ In High German the word seems to have acquired a legal sense (compare Latin causidicus judex); compare Inzicht.
Zeiland, masculine, ‘spurge laurel,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zîlant; scarcely allied to Middle High German zîl, ‘briar’; more probably connected with Seidelbast. Compare Zeidler.
Zeile, feminine, ‘line, row, rank,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zîle, Old High German zîla, feminine (late Middle High German also ‘lane’). A specifically High German derivative of the Teutonic root tī̆ from which Ziel and Zeit are also derived.
Zeisig, masculine, ‘siskin,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zîsec, usually zîse, feminine. Borrowed, like Stieglitz and Kiebitz, from Slavonic (Polish czyż, Bohemian čižek), whence also Low German ziseke, sieske, Dutch sijsje. English siskin, Danish sisgen, Swedish siska.
Zeit, feminine, ‘time, epoch, period, tense,’ from the equivalent Middle High German and Old High German zit, feminine and neuter (Old High German zîd, neuter); corresponding to Old Saxon tîd, Dutch tijd, Anglo-Saxon tîd, English tide (compare Dutch tij, which is also used of the flow of the sea). The root of Teutonic tî-di-, ‘time,’ is tî-, as is proved by the equivalent Old Icelandic tíme, Anglo-Saxon tîma, English time (compare Gothic hweila under Weile). A corresponding Aryan root dī̆ is presupposed by Sanscrit a-diti, ‘unlimited in time and space, unending, endless’ (the name of the goddess Aditi). Other Teutonic derivatives of the same root are Zeile and Ziel, which also point to the ‘limitless in time or space’. —
Zeitlose, feminine, ‘meadow saffron,’ from Middle High German zîtlôse, Old High German zîtilôsa; the name of the plant is due to the fact that it does not bloom at the ordinary period of flowering plants. —
Zeitung, feminine, ‘newspaper, gazette,’ from late Middle High German zîtunge, ‘information, news’; compare Dutch tijding, English tidings, Old Icelandic tiðende, ‘tidings.’ The evolution of the meaning from the stem of Zeit is not quite clear; compare, however, English to betide.
Zelle, feminine, ‘cell,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zëlle; formed from Latin cella (compare Keller).
Zelt, neuter, ‘tent, pavilion, awning,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zëlt (more frequently gezëlt), Old High German zëlt (usually gizëlt), neuter. A common Teutonic word; compare Anglo-Saxon gëteld, ‘tent, pavilion, cover’ (hence English tilt), Old Icelandic tjald, ‘curtain, tent.’ From Old Teutonic, French taudis, ‘hut’ (Spanish and Portuguese toldo, ‘tent’?), is derived; Old French taudir, ‘to cover,’ points to the Anglo-Saxon strong verb betëldan, ‘to cover, cover over’ (English and Dutch tent is based upon French tente; compare Italian tenda, from Latin tendere). Hence the evolution of meaning of Zelt may be easily understood from a Teutonic root teld, ‘to spread out covers.’ The following word is allied.
Zelte, masculine, ‘cake, tablet, lozenge,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zëlte, Old High German zëlto, masculine. Perhaps derived from the Teutonic root teld, ‘to spread out’ (see the preceding word). Compare Fladen for the meaning.
Zelter, masculine, ‘palfrey, ambling pace,’ from ​the equivalent Middle High German zëlter, Old High German zëltâri, masculine. Literally ‘a horse that goes at a gentle pace’; allied to Bavarian and Middle High German zëlt, masculine, ‘amble, gentle pace,’ Dutch telganger, ‘ambler.’ To this Anglo-Saxon tealtrian, ‘to totter,’ is probably allied.
Zent- in Zentgericht, neuter, ‘criminal court or jurisdiction’; -graf, masculine, ‘judge of a criminal court,’ from Middle High German zënte, feminine, ‘district, consisting properly of 100 communities’; compare Italian cinta, Middle Latin centa, ‘district.’
Zentner, masculine, ‘hundredweight,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zêntenœre, masculine. Formed from Middle Latin centenarius (Da. centenaar); in French, however, quintal, Italian quintale (and cantâro?).
Zepter, masculine and neuter, ‘sceptre,’ from Middle High German zëpter, masculine and neuter, which is again derived from Greek-Latin sceptrum.
zer-, prefix from Middle High German zer- (Middle German zur- and zu-), Old High German zir-, zar-, zur-; a common West Teutonic verbal prefix, meaning ‘asunder’; compare Old Saxon ti, Anglo-Saxon tô. In Gothic only twis- occurs as a verbal prefix in twisstandan, ‘to separate’; the nominal Gothic prefix tuz- (Old High German zûr-, Old Icelandic tor-) corresponds to Greek δυς-, Sanscrit dus, ‘bad, difficult.’
zergen, verb, ‘to torment, tease, vex’; Modern High German only. It may be identical with Middle High German zęrn (and zęrgen), Old High German zęrian (see zehren); yet Dutch tergen, Anglo-Saxon tęrgan, ‘to tug, tease, worry’ (English to tarry), point to a Gothic *targian, which with Russian dergati, ‘to tear, tug,’ indicate an Aryan root dṛgh (compare träge).
zerren, verb, ‘to tug, tease, worry,’ from Middle High German and Old High German zerren, weak verb, ‘to tear, cleave’; from the same root as zehren.
zerrütten, see rütteln, rutschen.
zerschellen, verb, ‘to shatter, shiver,’ from Middle High German zerschëllen, strong verb, ‘to fly to pieces,’ literally ‘to burst with a loud noise.’
zerstreut, adjective, ‘scattered, dispersed’; first formed in the last century from French distrait.
zertrümmern, verb, ‘to destroy, shatter, lay in ruins,’ formed from Modern High German Trümmer, ‘fragments, ruins’; in Middle High German zerdrumen, ‘to hew to pieces,’ from Middle High German drum, ‘piece, splinter.’
zeter, interjection (especially in Zetergeschrei, ‘cry of murder, loud outcry,’ from Middle High German zêtergeschreie), from the equivalent Middle High German zêter (zëtter), ‘cry for help, of lamentation, or of astonishment’; not recorded elsewhere.
Zettel, masculine, from the equivalent late Middle High German zettel, masculine, ‘design or warp of a fabric’; allied to Middle High German and Old High German zetten, ‘to scatter, spread out,’ whence Modern High German verzetteln, ‘to disperse, spill.’ The early history of the root tad, seldom occurring in Old Teutonic, is obscure. — Zettel, masculine, ‘note, ticket, playbill, placard,’ from Middle High German zedele (zetele, zettele), ‘sheet of paper,’ is different from the preceding word. It is formed from Italian cedola (French céndle), ‘ticket,’ Middle Latin scedula (Greek σχέδη), ‘scrap of paper.’
Zeug, neuter, ‘stuff, substance, material, fabric, apparatus, utensils,’ from Middle High German ziuc (g), masculine and neuter, ‘tool, implements, equipment, weapons, baggage, stuff, testimony, proof, witness'; Old High German giziug, masculine and neuter, ‘equipment, implements’ (hence Modern High German Zeughaus, ‘arsenal’). Allied to Modern High German Zeuge, masculine, ‘witness,’ from the equivalent late Middle High German (rare) ziuge. Also zeugen, verb, ‘to produce, beget, bear witness, testify,’ from Middle High German ziugen, ‘to beget, prepare, procure, acquire, bear witness, prove,’ Old High German giziugôn, ‘to attest, show.’ All the cognates are derived from the Teutonic root tuh (see ziehen), which in a few derivatives appears in the sense of ‘to produce, beget’; compare Anglo-Saxon teám, ‘descendants’ (to which English to teem is allied), Dutch toom, ‘brood.’ From the same root the meaning ‘to attest, show,’ (Old High German giziugôn), literally ‘to be put on judicial record,’ must be derived.
Zicke, feminine, ‘kid,’ from Middle High German zickelîn, Old High German zicchî, zickîn (for the suffix -în, see Schwein), neuter; corresponding to Anglo-Saxon tiččen. A diminutive of Teutonic tigô-, ‘she-goat.’ Compare Ziege.
Zickzack, masculine and neuter, ‘zigzag,’ Modern High German only; a recent form from Zacke.
Zieche, feminine, ‘cover of a feather-bed, tick,’ from Middle High German zieche, Old High German ziahha, feminine, ‘coverlet, pillow-case’; corresponding to Dutch tijk, English tick. Latin-Greek thêca, whence also French taie, ‘pillow-case,’ as well as Old Irish tíach, ‘tick,’ was adopted in High German contemporaneously with Kiffen and Pfühl, hence thêca was permutated to ziahha.
Ziege, feminine, ‘she-goat,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zige, Old High German ziga, feminine; a Franconian word, which in the Middle High German period passed also into Low German. In Upper German, Geiß, with which Ziege is probably connected etymologically; for Gothic gait-, ‘goat,’ may have had a graded variant *gitô-, by metathesis *tigô-. The latter form must also have been current ​in pre-historic times, as is proved by the Anglo-Saxon diminutive tiččen, equivalent to Old High German zicchî (see Zicke), and the form kittîn, obtained by metathesis, equivalent to Old High German chizzî. In East Middle German Hitte and Hippe are used for Ziege; in Alemannian and Bavarian and in Thuringian Ziege is the current term.
Ziegel, masculine, ‘brick, tile,’ from the equivalent Middle High German ziegel, Old High German ziagal, masculine. The word was borrowed in the pre-High German period, perhaps contemporaneously with Mauer, Pfosten, Spiegel, and Speicher, from Latin têgula, whence also the Romance cognates, Italian tegghia, tegola, French tuile; from the same source are derived Dutch tegehel, tegel, Anglo-Saxon tigel, English tile. Tiegel is not a cognate, but a genuine Teutonic word, although Latin tegula and its Romance forms may be used in the sense of Tiegel.
ziehen, verb, ‘to draw, pull, march,’ from the equivalent Middle High German ziehen, Old High German ziohan; a common Teutonic strong verb; compare Gothic tiuhan, Old Saxon tiohan, Anglo-Saxon teon. The Teutonic verbal root tuh (tug) corresponds to an Aryan root duk, which has been preserved in Latin dûco, ‘to lead.’ From the same root the cognates of Zaum, Zeug, Zecht (Herzog), and the (properly) Low German Tau, neuter, are derived.
Ziel, neuter, ‘limit, aim, goal,’ from the equivalent Middle High German and Old High German zil, neuter. Allied to Gothic tils, gatils, ‘suitable, fit,’ and gatilôn, ‘to aim at, attain,’ Old High German zilôn, ‘to make haste,’ Anglo-Saxon tilian, ‘to be zealous, till' (English to till), Dutch telen, ‘to produce, create,’ Old Saxon tilian, ‘to attain.’ To the Gothic adjective tila-, ‘suitable,’ the Scandinavian preposition til (whence English till) belongs. Hence the primary meaning of the cognates is ‘that which is fixed, definite,’ so that it is possible to connect them with the Teutonic root tī̆ in Zeile and Zeit.
ziemen, verb, ‘to beseem, become, suit,’ from Middle High German zëmen, Old High German zëman, ‘to beseem, suit, be adapted, gratify'; corresponding to Gothic gatiman, Old Saxon tëman, Dutch betamen, strong verb, ‘to be proper, suit.’ It has been suggested under zahm that Old High German zeman, ‘to suit,’ is a deduction from the causative zähmen (see zahm and Zunft). Allied to ziemlich, adjective, ‘suitable, moderate, tolerable,’ from Middle High German zimelich, ‘proper, adapted.’
Ziemer, masculine, ‘buttock, hind-quarter' (of animals), ‘haunch (of venison),’ from the equivalent Middle High German zimere, feminine Bavarian dialectic forms such as Zem (Zen) and Zemsen indicate the Teutonic origin of the word; Teutonic base têmoz-, timiz-.
Zier, feminine, ‘ornament, decoration,’ from Middle High German ziere, Old High German ziarî, feminine, ‘beauty, magnificence, ornament’; an abstract of the Middle High German adjective ziere, Old High German ziari, zêri, ‘precious, splendid, beautiful.’ Corresponding to Old Icelandic tírr, Old Saxon and Anglo-Saxon tîr, masculine, ‘fame, honour' (English tire). The relation of the words is difficult to explain, because the stem vowels (Old High German ia not equivalent to Anglo-Saxon î) do not correspond. No connection with Latin decus, ‘honour’ (decôrus, ‘becoming’), is possible. —
Zierat (Zierrat is a corruption), masculine, ‘adornment, decoration,’ from Middle High German zierôt, an abstract of Middle High German ziere (compare Armut and Kleinod). —
Zierde, feminine, ‘ornament, decoration,’ from Middle High German zierde, Old High German ziarida, feminine, with the meanings of Old High German ziarî, feminine (see Zier).
Ziesel, masculine, ‘shrew-mouse,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zisel (and zisemûs), masculine; a corruption of the equivalent Latin cisimus.
Ziestag, see Dienstag.
Ziffer, feminine, ‘figure, numeral, cipher,’ from late Middle High German (rare), zifer, ziffer, feminine; corresponding to Dutch cijfer, English cipher, French chiffre, ‘cipher, secret characters,’ Italian cifra, ‘secret characters.’ Originally ‘cipher, nought’; adopted in the European languages from Arabic çafar, ‘nought,’ along with the Arabic notation.
-zig, suffix for forming the tens, from Middle High German -zic (g), Old High German -zug; compare zwanzig. In dreißig, from Middle High German drî-ȥec, Old High German drî-ȥug, there appears a different permutation of the t of Gothic tigus, ‘ten’; compare Anglo-Saxon -tig, English -ty. Gothic tigu- (from pre-Teutonic dekú-) is a variant of taíhan, ‘ten.’ See zehn.
Zimmer, neuter, ‘room, chamber,’ from Middle High German zimber, Old High German zimbar, neuter, ‘timber, wooden building, dwelling, room'; corresponding to Old Saxon timbar, Dutch timmer, ‘room,’ Anglo-Saxon timber, English timber, Old Icelandic timbr. To these are allied Gothic timrjan, ‘to build up' Old High German and Middle High German zimberen, Modern High German zimmern, ‘to build.’ The primary meaning of the substantive was certainly ‘wood for building'; it is primitively allied to Latin domus, Greek δόμος, Sanscrit dama, Old Slovenian domŭ, ‘house' (literally ‘building of wood'); and also to the root verb Greek δέμω, ‘to build' (δέμας, ‘bodily frame').
Zimmet, masculine, ‘cinnamon,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zinemîn, zinmënt, Old High German sinamin, masculine; from Middle Latin cinamonium ​(Greek κώναμον). For the Romance term see Kanel.
zimperlich, adjective, ‘prim. prudish, affected,’ a Middle German form for the genuine Upper German zimpferlich; compare Middle Dutch zimperlije, usually simpellje, equivalent to Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish dialectic simper, semper, ‘fastidious,’ English to simper.
Zindel, masculine, ‘light taffeta,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zindâl, zëndâl; from Middle Latin cendalum (Greek σίνδων, ‘fine linen,’ literally ‘Indian stuff’), whence Italian zendado, and zendale.
Zingel, masculine, ‘stone wall, palisade,’ from Middle High German zingel, masculine, ‘rampart,’ whence Modern High German umzingeln, ‘to encircle, surround’ (Middle High German zingeln, ‘to make an entrenchment’), formed like Latin cingulus, cingere.
Zink, neuter and masculine, ‘zinc,’ Modern High German only; certainly connected with Zinn. It has been thought that Zinn, ‘tin,’ when borrowed by Slavonic was extended by a Slavonic suffix k, with which as zink it passed again into German (whence French zinc). Other etymologists assume a connection with the following word, because tin when melting forms spikes (Zinken).
Zinken, masculine, ‘spike, prong,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zinke, Old High German zinko, masculine. How the equivalent Middle High German zint, Old Icelandic tindr, and Modern High German Zacke are connected with this word is not clear. Late Middle High German zinke (and zint), as a designation of a wind instrument (cornet), has been preserved in Modern High German.
Zinn, neuter, ‘tin,’ from the equivalent Middle High German and Old High German zin, neuter; corresponding to Dutch, Anglo-Saxon, English, and Old Icelandic tin; a common Teutonic term which has no cognates in the allied languages (Irish tinne seems to be borrowed). Latin stannum is the source of French étain, Italian stagno, but not of the Teutonic words.
Zinne, feminine, ‘pinnacle, battlement,’ from Middle High German zinne, Old High German zinna, feminine, ‘upper part of a wall with openings or embrasures.’ On account of the meaning it is probably not connected with Zahn; Middle High German zint (see Zinke) ‘point, peak’ (Old High German zinna, from *tinjôn for *tindjôn?), is more nearly allied. See Zahn.
Zinnober, masculine, ‘cinnabar,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zinober, masculine; formed from Latin-Greek κιννάβαρι, whence also French cinabre.
Zins, masculine, ‘tribute, rent, (plural) interest,’ from Middle High German and Old High German zins, masculine, ‘duty, tribute.’ Borrowed during the Old High German period (compare Kreuz) from Latin census (Italian censo), ‘census, tax.’ The High German word passed in the form tins into Old Saxon; in Dutch, eijns.
Zipfel, masculine, ‘tip, point, peak, lappet,’ from Middle High German zipfel (zipf), masculine, ‘pointed end, peak’; allied to English and Dutch tip. Zapfen is the only primitively cognate word in Teutonic (Zopf has no connection with Zipfel).
Zipperlein, neuter, ‘gout,’ from late Middle High German (rare) zipperlîn, ‘gout in the feet’; allied to Middle High German zippeltrit, ‘tripping step.’ Zippeln is an onomatopoetic imitation of zappeln.
Zirbel, feminine, in Zirbeldrüse, feminine. ‘pineal gland,’ from Middle High German zirbel-, in zirbelwint, ‘whirlwind'; allied to Middle High German zirben, ‘to move in a circle, whirl,’ Old High German zerben, Anglo-Saxon tearflian, ‘to turn.’ The Teutonic root tarb, ‘to whirl,’ cannot be traced farther back.
Zirkel, masculine, ‘circle, circuit, company, society,’ from Middle High German zirkel, Old High German zirkil, masculine, ‘circle,’ which is again derived from Latin circulus (Italian circolo, French cercle), ‘circle,’ Middle High German and Old High German zirc, ‘circle,’ from Latin circus (Italian circo).
zirpen, verb, ‘to chirp,’ Modern High German only; a recent onomatop. form. So too zischeln, verb, ‘to whisper,’ and zischen, verb, ‘to hiss, whiz'; Modern High German only; in Middle High German, zispezen, neuter, ‘hissing.’
Zistag, see Dienstag.
Zither, Cither, feminine, ‘guitar, zither’; formed like the equivalent Old High German cithara, zitera, feminine, from the equivalent Latin cithara. Middle High German has only zitôle, feminine, ‘zither,’ from Old French citole, which, like Italian cétera, comes from Latin cîthara. Italian and Spanish guitarra, whence French guitare, Modern High German Guitarre, ‘guitar,’ is, on the other hand, derived from Greek κιθάρα.
Zitrone, Citrone, feminine, ‘citron,’ Modern High German only, from French citron, which is borrowed from Latin-Greek κίτρον. The origin of the latter word (the East?) is unknown.
Zitter, Zieter, feminine, ‘thill, shaft,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zieter, Old High German ziotar, zieter, masculine and neuter. The latter can hardly represent *ziohtar (allied to ziehen) on account of Anglo-Saxon teóder, English tether, Old Icelandic tjóðr, ‘rope.’ The unintelligible Modern High German word was popularly, but wrongly, connected with zittern (dialectic Zetter, Zitterstange).
Zitteroch, masculine, ‘herpetic eruption,’ from the equivalent Middle High German ziteroch, Old High German zittaroh (hh), masculine (ttr remains unpermutated as in zittern); corresponding to Anglo-Saxon tëter, English tetter, to tetter. Allied in the non-Teutonic languages to Sanscrit dadru, dadruka, ‘cutaneous eruption,’ Lithuanian dedervine, ‘tether, scab,’ and Latin derbiosus (from derdviosus?). Anglo-Saxon tëter is based like Sanscrit dadru on an Aryan ​de-dru-, a reduplicated form (like Biber); Old High German zittaroh is borrowed from it.
zittern, verb, ‘to tremble, shake, quiver,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zitern, zittern, Old High German zittarôn, weak verb; corresponding to Old Icelandic titra, ‘to twinkle, wink, tremble’ (old tr remains unpermutated in High German; compare bitter, Splitter, and treu). Zittern is one of the few Teutonic verbs which have a reduplicated present (see beben). From the implied primitively Teutonic *ti-trô-mi the transition to the weak ô conjugation is easily understood, just as the change of Teutonic *rî-rai-mi, ‘I tremble’ (compare Gothic reiran, ‘to shake,’ from an Aryan root rai-), to the similarly sounding weak ai conjugation. In the non-Teutonic languages no cognates of zittern have been found (Aryan root drā̆?). The German word was adopted by Danish; compare Danish zittre, ‘to shake.’
Zitwer, masculine, ‘zedoary,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zitwar, zitwan, Old High German citawar, zitwar, masculine; from Middle Latin zeduarium, the source of which is Arabic zedwâr. The zedoary was introduced into European medical science by the Arabs (compare also Italian zettovario, French zédoaire, English zedoary).
Zitz, Zits, masculine, ‘chintz,’ from the equivalent Dutch sits, chits, English chintz. The ultimate source of the word is Bengalî chits, ‘variegated cotton.’
Zitze, feminine, ‘nipple, teat,’ from the equivalent late Middle High German (rare) zitze, feminine; compare the corresponding Low German titte, feminine, Dutch tet, feminine, Anglo-Saxon tit, masculine (plural tittas), English teat, Swiss tisse, ‘teat.’ The usual word for ‘teat’ in Old High German is tutta, tuta, feminine, tutto, tuto, masculine; Middle High German tutte, tute, feminine, tütal, neuter; compare Tüttel. In Romance occur the cognate words — Italian tetta, zizza, zezzolo, ‘teat,’ French tette, feminine, teton, tetin, masculine, ‘nipple,’ Spanish teta, as well as Italian tettare, Spanish tetar, French teter, ‘to suck’; the double forms with t and z imply that these words were borrowed from Teutonic.
Zobel, masculine, ‘sable (Mustella zibellina), sable-fur,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zobel, masculine; borrowed from Russian sobol (compare Danish zobel). From the same source are derived Middle Latin sabellum (Old French sable, English sable) and sabellinus, whence Italian zibellino, Spanish zebellina, French zibeline.
Zober, see Zuber.
Zofe, feminine, ‘maid, wanting-woman,’ Modern High German only, formed from Middle High German zâfen (zôfen), ‘to draw, arrange suitably, nurse, adorn’; zâfe, feminine, ‘ornament’; hence Zofe, literally ‘adorning maid.’
zögern, verb, ‘to linger, loiter, defer,’ Modern High German only, a derivative of Middle High German zogen, Old High German zogôn, ‘to tug, draw, go, defer, retard.’ An intensive form of ziehen; compare Old Icelandic toga, English to tug. For the development of meaning compare further Modern High German dialectic zögern, ‘to wander aimlessly.’
Zögling, masculine, ‘pupil,’ Modern High German only; formed with the suffix -ling from Middle High German *zoge, ‘guide, leader,’ in magezoge, ‘tutor,’ Old High German magazogo, ‘paedagogus’ (see Herzog); allied to ziehen.
Zoll (1.), masculine, ‘inch,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zol, masculine and feminine, which is probably identical with Middle High German zol, masculine, ‘cylindrical piece, log’; compare Middle High German îszolle, ‘icicle.’
Zoll (2.), masculine, ‘duty, toll, dues,’ from Middle High German and Old High German zol, masculine, ‘custom-house, toll, duty’; corresponding to the equivalent Old Saxon and Anglo-Saxon tol, English toll, Dutch tol, Old Icelandic tollr. Usually regarded as borrowed from Middle Latin telonium, Greek τελώνιον, ‘custom-house, toll.’ The German words are, however, in spite of the lack of a Gothic *tulls (for which môta occurs; compare Maut), so old, and correspond so closely, that they must be regarded as of genuine Teutonic origin. Zoll is connected with the root tal (appearing in zählen and Zahl), of which it is an old participle in no- (ll from ln), and hence it signified originally ‘that which is counted.’ —
Derivative Zöllner, masculine, ‘collector,’ receiver of customs,’ from Middle High German zolnœre, zolner, Old High German zollanâri, zolneri, masculine. Corresponding to Anglo-Saxon tolnêre, tollêre, English toller, Dutch tollenaar, Old Frisian tolner, Danish tolder; compare Old Saxon tolna, ‘toll.’
Zone, feminine, ‘zone,’ Modern High German only, from the equivalent Latin-Greek ζώνη.
Zopf, masculine ‘(long) plait of hair, pigtail, cue, tuft,’ from Middle High German and Old High German zopf, masculine, ‘end, peak, cue.’ Corresponding to Low German topp, Dutch top, ‘end, peak,’ Anglo-Saxon and English top (Middle English variant tuft), Old Icelandic toppr, ‘tuft of hair,’ Old Frisian top, ‘tuft,’ Swedish topp, Danish top, ‘point, end, cue.’ A common Teutonic word, by chance not recorded in Gothic. The literally meaning seems to be ‘projecting end’; hence Zopf originally ‘points of the hair when tied together’ (compare Zapfen and Topp). The value attached even in the Middle Ages to long plaits of hair as an element of female beauty is attested especially by the fact that the Swabian and Alemannian women when taking an oath held their plaits in their hands. Among the Teutons, to cut a person's hair was to brand ​him with infamy. From Teutonic are derived the Romance cognates, Old French top, ‘tuft of hair,’ Spanish tope, ‘end,’ Italian toppo, Modern French toupet, ‘tuft, lock of hair.’ No cognate terms are found in the non-Teutonic languages.
Zores, Zorus, masculine, ‘confusíon,’ Modern High German only, from Jewish zores, ‘oppression.’
Zorn, masculine, ‘anger, wrath, passion,’ from Middle High German zorn, masculine, Old High German zorn, neuter, ‘violent indignation, fury, insult, dispute’; corresponding to Old Saxon torn, neuter, ‘indignation,’ Anglo-Saxon torn, neuter, ‘anger, insult,’ Dutch toorn, masculine, ‘anger’ (torn, ‘push, fight’); in Gothic by chance not recorded. It is an old participle in no- from the root tar, ‘to tear’ (Gothic ga-tairan, Old High German zëran, ‘to tear to pieces, destroy’); hence Zorn meant literally ‘ending of the mind’?. Yet note Lithuanian durnas, ‘mad, angry, insufferable,’ and durnůti, ‘to rage.’
Zote, feminine, ‘obscenity,’ Modern High German only; of obscure origin, but certainly a loan-word. It is most probably connected with French sotie, sottie, ‘obscene farce’ (in the carnival plays obscenity is the main element), French sottise, ‘abusive language, indecency,’ from French sot, ‘blockhead,’ Spanish and Portuguese zote, ‘booby.’ With these are connected Italian zotico, ‘coarse, uncouth’ (compare Italian zotichezza, ‘coarseness,’ zoticacco, ‘uncouth, clownish’; they are not derived from Latin exoticus (Latin x is never equivalent to Romance z). Compare further Anglo-Saxon and English sot, Dutch sot, and Irish suthan, ‘blockhead,’ sotaire, ‘fop.’
Zotte (1.), Zottel, feminine, ‘lock, tuft, tangle,’ from Middle High German zote, zotte, masculine and feminine, ‘tuft of hair,’ Old High German zotta, zata, zota, feminine, zotto, masculine, ‘mane, comb (of birds), tuft.’ Middle High German zotte is normally permutated from toddôn-; compare Old Icelandic todde, masculine, ‘tuft, bit, tod (weight for wool),’ English tod, Dutch todde, ‘rags, tatters’; also Danish tot, ‘tuft of hair, tangle,’ Dutch toot, ‘hair-net’?. Nothing more definite can be ascertained concerning the early history of the word. From German are derived the Italian words zazza, zázzera, ‘long hair,’ and tattera, ‘rubbish, trash’ (perhaps also Italian zatter, zattera, Spanish zata, zatara, ‘raft.’
Zotte (2.), feminine, dialectic, ‘spout of a vessel,’ equivalent to Dutch tuit, ‘pipe’ (see Düte).
zotteln, verb, ‘to move clumsily, shuffle along,’ from Middle High German zoten, ‘to walk slowly, saunter’; compare English tottle, toddle, totter; allied to Zotte (1).
zu, preposition, ‘to, in addition to, at, in order to’; adverb, ‘to, towards,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zuo (Middle German zû), Old High German zuo, zua, zô; compare the corresponding Old Saxon tô, Dutch toe, Old Frisian tô, Anglo-Saxon tô, English to; wanting in Old Icelandic and Gothic (for which Scandinavian til and Gothic du occur). It corresponds in non-Teutonic to Lithuanian da-, Old Irish do, as well as to Zend -da, Greek -δε, and Latin -do, which are used enclitically.
Zuber, Zober, masculine, ‘tub,’ from Middle High German zuber, zober, Old High German zubar, neuter, ‘vessel’; probably allied primitively to Middle English tubbe, English tub, Dutch tobbe, Low German tubbe and töver. In Old High German also zwibar, which compared with Old High German einbar (see Eimer) is regarded as a ‘vessel with two handles,’ and is connected in form with Greek δίφρος (from dwi, ‘two,’ and root Φερ).
Zubuße, feminine, ‘additional contribution,’ from late Middle High German zuobuoȥe, feminine, zuobuoȥ, masculine, ‘supplement’; compare Buße.
Zucht, feminine, ‘breeding, rearing, breed, brood, education, discipline,’ from Middle High German and Old High German zuht, feminine, ‘marching, expedition; education, discipline; culture, propriety; that which is trained, cultivated; posterity.’ A verbal abstract of ziehen (compare Flucht from fliehen); corresponding to Low German and Dutch tucht, Anglo-Saxon tyht, Danish tugt, Gothic *taúhts (in ustaúhts, ‘completion’). — Derivatives —
züchten, verb, ‘to breed, cultivate, bring up, discipline,’ from Middle High German zühten, Old High German zuhten, zuhtôn, ‘to train up.’ —
züchtig, adjective, ‘modest, bashful, discreet,’ from Middle High German zühtec, Old High German zuhtîg, ‘well bred, polite; punitive; pregnant.’ —
züchtigen, verb, ‘to chastise, correct, punish,’ from Middle High German zühtegen, ‘to punish.’
Zuck, masculine, ‘twitch, start, shrug,’ from Middle High German zuc (genitive zuckes), masculine, ‘quick marching, jerk.’ Allied to zucken, zücken, verb, ‘to move convulsively, start, jerk, tug,’ from Middle High German zucken, zücken, Old High German zucchen, zukken, ‘to march quickly, snatch away, jerk, tug’; intensive form of ziehen. Hence the Modern High German compounds entzücken, verzücken (Middle High German enzücken, verzücken), signified originally ‘to snatch away, transport in spirit.’ From the base tukkôn is derived French toucher, Italian toccare.
Zucker, masculine, ‘sugar,’ from the corresponding Middle High German zucker, zuker, masculine (Old High German zucura, once only); compare the corresponding Dutch suiker, Middle English sucre, English sugar, Icelandic sẏkr, Danish sukker, Swedish socker. The word was borrowed from Middle Latin zucara, which is derived in the first instance from Arabic sokkar, assokhar; from the same source the Romance class French sucre and Italian zucchero are obtained. Spanish azúcar was directly adopted ​from the Arabs, who cultivated the sugarcane in Spain. Compare further Latin saccharum, Greek σάκχαρ, σάκχαρον, Persian schakar, Sanscrit çarkarâ, ‘granulated sugar,’ Prakrit sakkara. The primitive source of the word is probably India.
Zuckerkand, masculine, ‘sugar-candy,’ Modern High German only, from French sucre candi, Italian zucchero candito, ‘crystallised sugar, sugar-candy,’ which is derived from Arabic qand; the ultimate source of the word is Indian khand, ‘piece.’
zuerst, adverb, ‘at first, firstly, in the first place,’ from the equivalent Middle High German ze êrest, zêrest, Old High German zi êrist, zêrist, ‘at first, for the first time’; compare erst.
Zufall, masculine, ‘chance, incident, occurrence, accident,’ from late Middle High German zuoval, masculine, ‘accident, what happens to a person, receipts’; allied to fallen.
zufrieden, adverb and adjective, ‘contented, satisfied,’ Modern High German only; originally only an adverb formed by the combination of the preposition zu and the dative of the substantive Friede. Hence the original meaning of zufrieden is ‘in peace, quietly, protection.’ In Middle High German mit vride (compare abhanden, behende) was the equivalent expression.
Zug, masculine, ‘pull, march, expedition,’ from Middle High German zuc (genitive zuges), Old High German zug, masculine, a verbal abstract of ziehen (compare Flug from fliegen). Corresponding to the equivalent Dutch teug, Anglo-Saxon tyge, English tug, and Danish tog.
Zugang, masculine, ‘admittance, access,’ from the equivalent Middle High German and Old High German zuoganc, masculine (see Gang).
Zügel, masculine, ‘rein, bridle, check,’ from Middle High German zügel, zugel, masculine, ‘strap, band, rein,’ Old High German zugil, zuhil (zuol), masculine, ‘band, cord, rein’; a derivative of ziehen. Corresponding to Old Icelandic tygell, masculine, ‘strap, cord, rein,’ Anglo-Saxon tygel, Dutch teugel, Danish tøile. See also Zaum.
zugleich, adverb, ‘at the same time, together,’ Modern High German only, implying Middle High German *ze gelîche, ‘in the same manner’ (see gleich).
zuhand, adverb, ‘at once, immediately,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zehant, literally ‘at hand.’ In German many adverbial expressions are formed from the word Hand, — abhanden, vorhanden, allerhand; compare zufrieden.
zuletzt, adverb, ‘finally, ultimately,’ from Middle High German ze lęȥȥist, ze lęste, Old High German zi lęȥȥist; compare letzt.
Zülle, feminine, ‘lighter, boat,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zülle, zulle; early history obscure. The German word is related only to the Slavonic class, Russian čélnŭ, Polish czołn, Czech člun; on which side the word was borrowed cannot be ascertained.
Zulp, masculine, ‘sucking mark (on the skin), spot made by sucking,’ Modern High German only; allied to zullen, ‘to suck’; origin obscure. Probably related to Dutch tul, ‘bottle, tippler,’ tullen, ‘to tipple.’
zumal, adverb, ‘especially, particularly,’ from Middle High German and Old High German ze mâle, ‘at the point of time, forthwith, immediately’; compare Mal.
zünden, verb, ‘to take fire, set on fire, kindle,’ from Middle High German zünden, ‘to set on fire,’ Old High German zunten (from zuntjan), weak verb, ‘to kindle’; also in Middle High German zunden, ‘to burn, give light,’ Old High German zundên, ‘to be aflame, glow.’ Compare Gothic tundnan, ‘to be kindled,’ tandjan, weak verb, ‘to set on fire,’ Anglo-Saxon tyndan, Middle English tenden, English (dialectic) teend, tind, ‘to kindle,’ Old Icelandic tendra, Swedish tända, Danish tœnde. Middle High German zinden, strong verb, ‘to burn, glow,’ implies a Gothic strong verb *tindan; to this is allied Old High German zinsilo, masculine, zinsilôd, ‘fomes,’ zinsera, feminine ‘censer’ (not from Latin incensorium), and zinsilôn, ‘machinari.’ With Gothic tandjan, ‘to set on fire,’ are connected Old High German zantaro, Middle High German zander, ‘glowing coal,’ Old Icelandic tandre, ‘fire.’ The Teutonic root tand (Aryan dnt?, dndh?), ‘to burn,’ has no undoubted cognates in the non-Teutonic languages. — Derivative Zunder, Zundel, masculine, ‘tinder, touchwood, fuse,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zunder, masculine and neuter, Old High German zuntara, zuntra, feminine. Compare Low German tunder, Dutch tonder, Anglo-Saxon tynder, English tinder, Old Icelandic tundr, Swedish tunder, Danish tender. Forms with l also occur; compare Old High German zuntil, Middle High German zundel, zündel, masculine, ‘lighter, tinder’ (Modern High German proper name Zündel), Dutch tondel. From Teutonic is borrowed Old French tondre, ‘tinder.’
Zunft, feminine, ‘guild, corporation, club, sect,’ from Middle High German zunft, zumft, Old High German zumft, feminine, ‘propriety, rule, law; society governed by certain rules, union, association,’ guild’; allied to ziemen. Old High German zumft is derived from zëman, ‘to be proper,’ by means of the -ti (Gothic -þi), which forms verbal abstracts; for the intrusion of an f in the combination mt, compare Kunft, Nunft, and Ramft. Hence the original meaning of Zunft is ‘suitability, propriety, that which is becoming or according to law.’ For the development of meaning compare Gilde, derived from Low German.
Zunge, feminine, ‘tongue, language,’ from Middle High German zunge, feminine, ‘tongue, tongue-shaped ​piece, language,’ Old High German zunga, feminine, ‘tongue, domain of a language.’ Compare Old Saxon tunga, Low German tunge, Dutch tonge, Old Frisian tunge, Anglo-Saxon tunge, English tongue, Old Icelandic and Swedish tunga, Danish tunge, Gothic tuggô. In non-Teutonic occurs the cognate Latin lingua, which is usually supposed to come from *dingua (like lacrima for dacrima, see Zähre). Teutonic tungôn, with Zange, is scarcely allied to the Sanscrit root danç, ‘to bite, be pointed’ (Zunge should be literally ‘that which licks’); the relation to Sanscrit juhû, jihvâ, ‘tongue,’ is uncertain.
zunichte, adverb, ‘ruined, undone,’ in the phrases zunichte, werden, ‘to be ruined,’ zunichte machen, ‘to ruin, destroy,’ from Middle High German ze nihte, ‘to nothing’; see nicht.
Zünsler, masculine, ‘pilser,’ Modern High German only; probably allied to Old High German zinsilo, ‘tinder’ (compare Middle High German zinden, ‘to burn’), mentioned under zünden.
zupfen, verb, ‘to pull, pluck,’ Modern High German only, earlier Modern High German zopfen; denominative from Zopf; hence zupfen means literally ‘to drag by the hair’?.
zurecht, adverb, ‘in order, aright,’ from Middle High German ze rëhte, Old High German zi rëhte, ‘aright’; compare Low German te rechte (see Recht).
zürnen, verb. ‘to be angry,’ from Middle High German zürnen, Old High German zurnen; denominative from Zorn.
zurück, adverb, ‘back, backwards,’ from Middle High German zerücke (Middle German zurücke), Old High German zi rucke, ‘backwards, behind one's back’; compare Low German terügge. Allied to Rücken; compare English back.
zusammen, adverb, ‘together,’ from Middle High German zesamene, zesamt, Old High German zisamane, ‘together, jointly’; compare sammeln, samt.
züsseln, verb, ‘to pluck’; probably a derivative of zausen, Middle High German zûsen.
Zuversicht, feminine, ‘confidence, reliance, conviction,’ from Middle High German zuoversiht (Middle German zûvorsiht), Old High German zuofirsiht, feminine, ‘foreseeing, glance into the future, expectation, hope.’ Allied, like Sicht, to sehen.
zuvor, adverb, ‘before, beforehand, formerly,’ from late Middle High German zuovor, zuovorn (Middle German zûvor), ‘formerly, beforehand.’ Allied, like bevor, to vor.
zuwege, adverb in zuwege bringen, ‘to bring out, accomplish,’ from Middle High German ze wëge, Old High German zi wëge, ‘on the (right) way.’ Compare wegen, adverb, and Weg.
zuweilen, adverb, ‘at times, sometimes,’ Modern High German only; in Middle High German under wîlen or wîlen, wîlent, ‘once, formerly.’ Similarly, Modern High German bisweilen, alleweil, weiland; compare weil.
zuwider, adjective (originally adverb), ‘importunate,’ Modern High German only; implying Middle High German *ze wider, formed in a similar way to Modern High German zugegen (Middle High German zegęgene), literally ‘against’; see wider.
zwacken, verb, ‘to pinch, tease, cheat,’ from Middle High German zwacken, ‘to pluck, tug’; a graded form of zwicken.
zwagen, verb, ‘to wash,’ see Zwehle.
zwang, masculine, ‘compulsion, force, restraint,’ from Middle High German twanc, zwanc (g), masculine, ‘compulsion, distress, oppression’ (compare Middle High German des lîbes twanc, ‘tenesmus, constipation’), Old High German dwang (gidwang), masculine, ‘distress, contraction, compulsion’; abstract of zwingen. Allied to zwängen, verb, ‘to squeeze, constrain, force,’ denominative of Zwang, Middle High German twęngen, ‘to use violence to, squeeze in, oppress,’ Old High German dwęngen, ‘to use violence to’ (Old High German and Middle High German zwangen, zwęngen, ‘to pinch’; compare Middle High German zwange, ‘tongs’); see also zwingen. A Teutonic root þwenh (Aryan twenk) is implied by Old High German dûhen, Dutch duwen, Anglo-Saxon þŷan, ‘to press, oppress’ (from *þunhjan).
zwanzig, numeral, ‘twenty,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zweinzec, zwênzic, Old High German zweinzug; a common West Teutonic numeral. Compare Old Saxon twêntig, Low German and Dutch twintig, Old Frisian twintich, Anglo-Saxon twêntig (from twœ̂gentig?), English twenty (see -zig). The n of the first component seems to be a mark of the nominative plural masculine, as in Old High German zwên-e, Anglo-Saxon twêgen; see zwei.
zwar, adverb, ‘indeed, truly, of course,’ from Middle High German zwâre, ze wâre, ‘in truth,’ Old High German zi wâre (Middle High German wâr, neuter, ‘truth,’ an adjective used as a substantive). Connected, like fürwahr (Middle High German vür war, ‘truly), with wahr.
Zweck, masculine, ‘nail, plug; aim, object, design, goal,’ from Middle High German zwëc (-ckes), masculine, ‘nail, plug in the centre of the target; aim, object, design’; compare zwacken, zwicken, and Zwick. How the Modern High German word (originally ‘nail’) acquired its most prevalent meaning ‘design’ is explained by the Middle High German term, of which the central idea is ‘the object aimed at in the target’; other cognates of the Middle High German word are wanting.
zween, numeral, see zwei.
Zwehle, feminine, ‘towel,’ from Middle High German twęhele, twęhel, dwęhele, dwêle, feminine (also quęhele, Thuringian Quähle), ‘drying cloth, towel,’ Old High German dwahila, dwęhila, dwahilla. ​feminine, ‘towel, napkin, small napkin.’ The implied Gothic *þwahljô (old Anglo-Saxon thwehlœ) is a derivative of þwahl, ‘bath, washing,’ and hence signified ‘that which belongs to bathing.’ The cognates are connected with Modern High German (dialectic) zwagen, ‘to wash,’ from the equivalent Middle High German twaken, dwahen, Old High German dwahan; an old common Teutonic word for ‘to wash.’ Compare Gothic þwahan, Old Saxon thwahan, Anglo-Saxon þweán, Old Icelandic þvá, Danish toe, tvœtte, Swedish tvo, tvätta, ‘to wash.’ With these are connected Gothic þwahl, ‘bath,’ Anglo-Saxon þweál, ‘washing,’ Old High German dwahal, ‘bath,’ Old Icelandic þvál, ‘soap,’ Middle High German twuhel, ‘bathing tub.’ In the allied Aryan languages only Prussian twaxtan, ‘bathing apron,’ is cognate; Greek τέγγω, Latin tingo, ‘to moisten,’ are not connected with it. From Old Teutonic is derived the Romance class, Italian tovaglia, French touaille, equivalent to English towel.
zwei, numeral, ‘two,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zwëne, masculine, zwô, feminine, zwei, neuter; Old High German zwêne, masculine, zwo, feminine, zwei, neuter; common to Teutonic and Aryan. Compare Old Saxon twêne, masculine, twô, twâ, feminine, twei, neuter; Gothic twai, masculine, twôs, feminine, twa, neuter; Anglo-Saxon twêgen, masculine, twô, feminine, tû, neuter; English two, Dutch twê, Old Frisian twêne, masculine, twâ, feminine, twâ, neuter; Old Icelandic tveir, masculine, tvœr, feminine, tvau, neuter; Swedish tvâ, Danish to, tvende, masculine, to, feminine, to, neuter. Compare further zwanzig and zwölf. Corresponding in the non-Teutonic languages to Sanscrit dva, Zend dva, Greek δύο, Latin duo, Old Irish dá, Lithuanian dù, Russian dva. In earlier Modern High German the forms for the different genders were kept separate (zween, masculine, zwo, feminine, zwei, neuter), until in the 17th century the neuter form became the prevalent one. For further cognates see Zweifel and Zwist. —
zweierlei, adverb and adjective, ‘of two kinds, twofold,’ from Middle High German zweier leige, ‘of a double sort’; compare -lei.
Zweifalter, masculine, ‘butterfly,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zwîvalter, masculine, corrupted from Middle High German vîvalter, Old High German fîfaltra, ‘butterfly.’ See Falter and Schmetterling.
Zweifel, masculine, ‘doubt, uncertainty,’ from Middle High German zwîvel, masculine, ‘uncertainty, distrust, fickleness, perfidy, despair,’ Old High German zwîfal, masculine, ‘uncertainty, apprehension, despair,’ Compare Gothic tweifls, masculine, ‘doubt,’ Old Saxon twîfal, Dutch twijfel. The following forms also occur, Old High German zwîfo, zwëho, masculine, ‘doubt’ (equivalent to Old Saxon twëho, Anglo-Saxon tweó, ‘doubt’), and Old Icelandic týja (base twiwjôn), ‘doubt.’ All are based on a pre-Teutonic dweiq (dwī̆p), ‘to doubt.’ — Allied to zweifeln, verb, ‘to doubt, suspect,’ from Middle High German zwîvelen, Old High German zwîfalôn, ‘to waver, doubt’; compare Old Saxon twîflôn, ‘to waver,’ Danish tvivle, Dutch twijfelen, ‘to doubt.’ These cognates are unquestionably connected with zwei (compare Greek δοιή, ‘doubt,’ Sanscrit dvayá, ‘falseness’); the formation of the noun is, however, not clear (see Zweig and zwie-).
Zweig, masculine, ‘branch, bough, twig,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zwîc (-ges), neuter and masculine, Old High German zwîg, masculine; corresponding to Anglo-Saxon twĭg, English twig, Dutch twijg; also in Middle High German and Old High German zwî (genitive zwîes), neuter. The g is probably evolved from j, and zwî, genitive zwĭges, may be traced back to a nominative zwîg. The Anglo-Saxon form twĭg is implied by the accusative plural twĭgu (twiggu). Yet the primary forms cannot be ascertained with certainty, hence it is not quite clear how Zweig is connected with the numeral zwei (Zweig, Ut. ‘a division into two parts’?).
zweite, ordin. of zwei, ‘second,’ a Modern High German form. The form in Middle High German is ander, Old High German andar, ‘the other’; see ander.
Zwerch-, ‘athwart, across,’ in compounds such as Zwerchfell, ‘diaphragm,’ Zwerchpfeife, ‘life,’ Zwerchsack, ‘knapsack, wallet,’ from Middle High German twërch, dwërch (also quërch), adjective, ‘oblique, reversed, athwart,’ High German dwërah, twërh, ‘oblique, athwart.’ Corresponding to Anglo-Saxon þweorh, ‘perverse,’ Gothic þwaírhs, ‘angry’ (þwaírhei, feminine, ‘anger, dispute’), Dutch dwars, Danish tvœrs, tvœrt, ‘athwart.’ With these is also connected Modern High German überzwerch, adjective and adverb, ‘across, athwart, crosswise’ (Middle High German über twërch, über zwërch). The same Aryan root tverk appears also perhaps in Anglo-Saxon þurh, ‘through’ (see durch). Beside twërh, the Middle High German and Old High German variant twër, ‘oblique, athwart,’ occurs (in Middle High German also quër; see quer), Old Icelandic þverr, ‘athwart, impeding.’ Teutonic þwerhwo- points to an Aryan root twerk, with which Latin torqueo is connected.
Zwerg, masculine, ‘dwarf, pigmy,’ from the equivalent Middle High German twërc(g), getwërc (also querch, zwërch), Old High German twërg, masculine; a common Teutonic word. Compare Dutch dwerg, Anglo-Saxon dweorh, English dwarf, Old Icelandic dvergr, masculine, Swedish and Danish dverg. The Teutonic base is dwergo-, which is perhaps also connected with the Teutonic root drug, ‘to deceive’; hence Zwerg means literally ‘phantom, illusion’?.
Zwetsche, Quetsche, feminine, ‘damson’; Modern High German only; a difficult word to explain. Bavarian zwèšen, zwèšpen, Swiss zwetške, Austrian zwespen, Thuringian and East Middle German quatšge, seem to be related like quer and Zwerch, quängeln and zwingen, so that we must perhaps assume ​an initial tw. Since damsons were originally obtained from Damascus (the Crusaders are said to have introduced them into Europe; compare English damask plum, damascene, damson, Italian amascino, Portug. ameixa), it seems probable that the Teutonic cognates (Bavarian zwèschen) are derived from Middle Latin damascena or Greek δαμάσκηνον through the intermediate forms dmaskîn, dwaskîn, which appear in Transylvanian maschen, mäschen. Yet the phonological relations of the numerous dialectic forms are so indistinct that a final solution of all the difficulties has not yet been found. From High German are derived Dutch kwets, Danish svedske, Bohemian švetska.
Zwick, masculine, ‘peg, sprig; pinch, nip, twinge,’ from Middle High German zwic, a variant of zwëc (see Zweck), ‘nail, nip, pinch,’ From German is derived the equivalent Danish svik. —
Zwickel, masculine, ‘wedge,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zwickel, masculine; a derivative of the preceding word.
zwicken, verb, ‘to pinch, twitch, peg,’ from Middle High German zwicken, ‘to fasten with nails, squeeze in, pinch, tug,’ Old High German *zwicchên; compare Low German twikken, AB. twiččian, Middle English twicchen, English to twitch (see zwacken, Zweck).
zwie-, in compounds ‘two,’ from Middle High German and Old High German zwi-, Low German twi-, Dutch twee-, Old Icelandic tuî-, Anglo-Saxon twi-, Gothic *tvi-. It is the form of the numeral zwei as the first element of a compound; compare in the non-Teutonic languages δι- (from δϝι-), Latin bi-, Sanscrit dvi-, used in a similar way.
Zwieback, masculine, ‘biscuit,’ Modern High German only; probably a rendering of French biscuit (Italian biscotto); compare Danish tvebak, Dutch tweebak (also beschuit).
Zwiebel, feminine (Swiss zidele, Bavarian zwifel, Thuringian zippel), ‘onion, bulb,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zwibolle, zibolle (with the variants zwippel, zwifel, zibel, zebulle), masculine Old High German zwibollo, zwivolle, masculine. A corruption of Latin caepulla, ‘onion,’ whence also the Romance words, Italian cipolla, French ciboule; Danish swible has been adopted from German. The genuine German word for Zwiebel is Bolle (properly ‘bulb, ball’), on which Middle High German zwibolle was based. The English word bulb is derived from the Latin bulbus (Greek βολβόρ), ‘bulb, onion.’
zwiefach, adjective, ‘twofold, double,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zwifach; for the meaning of the second component see Fach. —
zwiefältig, adjective,‘twofold,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zwivaltic (also in Middle High German and Old High German zwivalt); compare falt. —
Zwielicht, neuter, ‘twilight,’ Modern High German only, formed from Low German twelecht; the Middle High German expression is zwischenlicht; compare English twilight.
zwier, adverb, ‘twice,’ earlier Modern High German, from the equivalent Middle High German zwir, Old High German zwirôr, zwiro; compare Old Icelandic tysvar, tvis-var (-var corresponding to Sanscrit vâra, ‘time’). Old High German drirôr, ‘thrice,’ is similarly formed.
Zwiesel, feminine, ‘fork,’ from Middle High German zwisele, Old High German zwisila, feminine, ‘fork, forked branch’; a derivative, like Zweig and Zweifel, from the stem twi- (see zwie-).
Zwiespalt, masculine, ‘division, discord, schism,’ Modern High German only, from zwie- and Spalt; in Middle High German the form is zwispęltunge, feminine, ‘division, discord.’ —
zwiespältig, adjective, ‘discordant, disunited,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zwispeltic, zwispaltic, Old High German zwispaltîg; allied to spalten. —
Zwiesprache, feminine, ‘dialogue, colloquy,’ Modern High German only; in Old High German zwisprëhho, masculine, with a different sense, ‘bifarius,’ and in Anglo-Saxon twisprœ̂ce, adjective, ‘double-tongued, deceitful.’ —
Zwietracht, feminine, ‘dissension, discord,’ from Middle High German zwitraht, feminine, ‘disunion’; zwieträchtig, adjective, ‘discordant, at variance,’ from Middle High German zweitrehtc, ‘disunited, discordant’; as a Middle German word it is allied to treffen (compare Eintracht).
Zwitlich, Zwilch, masculine, ‘twilled cloth, tick,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zwilich, zwilch, Old High German zwilîh (hh), masculine; properly an adjective used as a substantive, from zwilich, ‘twofold, consisting of two threads’ (to this Middle High German zwilchen, ‘to weave with two threads,’ is allied). Formed on the model of Latin bilix, ‘consisting of two threads’; compare Drillich.
Zwilling, masculine, ‘twin,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zwinelinc, zwillinc (g), masculine (also zwiselinc and zwilich-kint), and zwinelîn, neuter, Old High German zwiniling, masculine. A derivative of the Old High German adjective, zwinal, ‘geminus, gemellus,’ and also, like zwinal, from zwi-, ‘twofold’; compare the equivalent English twin, Dutch tweeling, Danish tvilling.
zwingen, verb, ‘to force, compel, vanquish,’ from Middle High German twingen, dwingen, ‘to press, cramp, force, compel, dominate,’ Old High German dwingan, thwingan, ‘to crowd, suppress, conquer,’ corresponding to Old Saxon thwingan, Old Icelandic þwinga, Danish tvinge, Dutch twingen, Old Frisian dwinga, twinga, Middle English twingen, ‘to force’ (English twinge), see also Zwang. — Derivatives Zwing, Twink, masculine, ‘fortress,’ from Middle High German twine, masculine, ‘that which constrains, confines; jurisdiction.’ —
​ Zwinge, feminine, ‘vice, clamp, holdfast,’ literally that which encloses or presses together; corresponding to the equivalent Danish tvinge. —
Zwinger, masculine, ‘fortified castle, prison, narrow space, wild beast’s cage, arena,’ from Middle High German twingœre, masculine, ‘oppressor, space between the walls and ditch of a citadel, promurale, fortress.’ Compare Danish twinger, ‘prison, wild beast's cage’ (Dutch dwinger, ‘despot, tyrant’).
zwinken, zwinkern, verb, ‘to wink, twinkle,’ from Middle High German zwinken, zwingen, ‘to blink, twinkle’; also in Middle High German zwinzen (from *zwingezen) and zwinzern. Corresponding to Anglo-Saxon twinclian, English to twinkle.
zwirbeln, verb, ‘to twirl,’ from Middle High German zwirbeln, zwirben, ‘to move in a circle, whirl’ (zwirbel, masculine, ‘in circular motion,’ zwirbelwint, ‘whirlwind’), Allied to Old High German zęrben (*zarbjan), ‘to turn round,’ Anglo-Saxon tearflian, ‘to roll’?. Undoubted cognates in the non-Teutonic languages are wanting.
Zwirn, masculine, ‘thread, twine, twisted yarn,’ from Middle High German zwirn, masculine, ‘double thread’; like Anglo-Saxon twîn, English twine, Dutch twijn (Danish tvinde, ‘twine wheel’), it points to a base twizna-. A Teutonic root twis appears also by a different derivation in English twist. —
zwirnen, verb, ‘to twist, twine, throw (silk),’ a denominative, from Middle High German zwirnen, Old High German zwirnén, -nôn, ‘to twist a double thread, twine’; compare Dutch tweernen, English to twine, and the equivalent Danish tvinde.
zwischen, adverb and afterwards preposition, ‘between, among,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zwischen, zwüschen, adverb and preposition Originally a shortened form of the adverbial expressions Middle High German inzwischen, under zwischen, Old High German in zwiskên, untar zwiskên, ‘between each pair.’ Allied to Middle High German zwisc, zwisch, adjective, Old High German zwisk, zwiski, adjective, ‘twofold, two and two’; compare Old Saxon twisk, Dutch tusschen, English betwixt.—Derivatives Modern High German dazwischen, inzwischen.
Zwist, masculine, ‘dissension, quarrel; twist,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zwist, masculine; properly a Low German word which has passed into High German. Compare Low German and Dutch twist, ‘quarrel,’ also Dutch and English twist, Danish twist, ‘twisted stuff, Middle English twist, ‘branch’ (twisten, ‘to plait’), Oc. tvistr, ‘sad, disunited,’ Icelandic tvistra, ‘to dissever.’ The Aryan root dwis, on which these words are based, appears in Sanscrit as dviš, ‘to hate,’ with a signification that resembles Modern High German Zwist; it may have been ‘to be at variance, disunited.’ Perhaps Latin bellum, duellum, ‘war, from the base *dwerlo-, equivalent to *dwislo-?, is also connected with this word.
zwitschern, verb, ‘to twitter, chirp, warble,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zwitzern, Old High German zwizzirôn; compare Middle English twiteren, English twitter (Danish qviddre). An onomatopoetic form.
Zwitter (earlier Modern High German Zwiedorn), masculine, ‘mongrel, hermaphrodite, hybrid,’ from Middle High German zwitar, zwëtorn, zwidorn, masculine, ‘hermaphrodite, bastard, half-caste,’ Old High German zwitarn, zwitaran, masculine, ‘nothus, hybris.’ A derivative of zwi-, ‘duplex’ (see zwie-); compare Modern High German dialectic Zwister, ‘hermaphrodite.’ Different forms occur in Old Icelandic (tvítóla) and Danish (tvetulle, ‘hermaphrodite’).
zwölf, numeral, ‘twelve,’ from the equivalent Middle High German zwęlf, zwęlif, Old High German zwęlif. A common Teutonic numeral; corresponding to Old Saxon twęlif, Dutch twaalf, Anglo-Saxon twęlf, English twelve, Gothic twalif, Old Icelandic tolf, Danish tolv, Swedish tolf. It is a compound of Teutonic twa- (High German zwei), with the component -lif, which appears also in elf (Gothic ain-lif). In the allied Aryan languages a corresponding form occurs only in Lithuanian twylika, ‘twelve,’ vënolika, ‘eleven’). For the signification of the second component, Teutonic -lif, Lithuanian -lika, see elf.