Wendehals
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German[edit]
Etymology[edit]
wenden (“turn around”) + Hals (“neck”)
Pronunciation[edit]
Audio (file)
Noun[edit]
Wendehals m (strong, genitive Wendehalses, plural Wendehälse)
- The Eurasian wryneck (Jynx torquilla).
- An opportunist, a person with no principles.
- (politics) A political opportunist after a regime change, particularly a communist in East Germany who switched to supporting capitalism after German reunification.
Declension[edit]
Declension of Wendehals [masculine, strong]
| singular | plural | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| indef. | def. | noun | def. | noun | |
| nominative | ein | der | Wendehals | die | Wendehälse |
| genitive | eines | des | Wendehalses | der | Wendehälse |
| dative | einem | dem | Wendehals, Wendehalse1 | den | Wendehälsen |
| accusative | einen | den | Wendehals | die | Wendehälse |
1Now rare, see notes.
Derived terms[edit]
- Rotkehl-Wendehals (“red-throated wryneck”)
Descendants[edit]
- Russian: вертише́йка (vertišéjka) (calque)
Further reading[edit]
- “Wendehals” in Duden online