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

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