Keule

See also: keule

German

Nachbildung einer Keule

Etymology

From Middle High German kiule, kūle, from Old High German *kiula, from Proto-West Germanic *kiulijā, from Proto-Germanic *kiulijǭ, from Proto-Indo-European *gewl- (“vessel; club”), from *gew- (“to bend, arch”). Cognate with Middle Low German kü̂le.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkɔʏ̯lə/

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

Keule f (genitive Keule, plural Keulen, diminutive Keulchen n)

1. club (weapon)

   Synonyms: Knüppel, (dated) Knüttel, (chiefly southern) Prügel

2. club (for juggling)
3. (regional) pestle

   Synonyms: Stößel, Pistill

4. leg (of animal, eaten as meat)

   Synonym: (southern) Schlegel

5. (colloquial, regional, including Berlin) bro, mate, dude

   Synonyms: Alter, Kumpel, Bruder

   Na, Keule? ― What's up, mate?

   • 2000, “Da Draussen”, in Fettes Brot für die Welt, performed by Fettes Brot:

     Also Keule denk nach über einen Neuanfang / Weil selbst erfrorene Ohren Feuer fangen bei unserem Schleudergang

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Usage notes

• (club): Keule is associated especially with clubs that become thicker towards the end. Relatedly, it is often used in the context of prehistoric hunters.

Declension

Declension of Keule [feminine]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	eine	die	Keule	die	Keulen
genitive	einer	der	Keule	der	Keulen
dative	einer	der	Keule	den	Keulen
accusative	eine	die	Keule	die	Keulen

Hyponyms

• Entenkeule
• Gänsenkeule
• Hähnchenkeule
• Hasenkeule
• Mörserkeule
• Rehkeule

Derived terms

• keulenartig
• keulenförmig

Descendants

• → Polish: kula (only the "crutch" meaning)

Further reading

• “Keule” in Duden online
• “Keule” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• Friedrich Kluge (1883) “Keule”, in John Francis Davis, transl., Etymological Dictionary of the German Language, published 1891