Bütte

German

Alternative forms

• Bütt, Butte

Etymology

From Middle High German bütte, from Old High German *butta, from Proto-West Germanic *buttjā. Cognate with Yiddish ביט (bit).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbʏtə/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Audio (Germany (Berlin)):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: Büt‧te

Noun

Bütte f (genitive Bütte, plural Bütten)

1. (regional, chiefly western Germany) tub, vat, barrel (open vessel, often large and made of wood)

   Synonyms: Bottich, Fass, Kübel, Tonne, Wanne

2. (regional, Rhineland, usually in the form Bütt) a lectern for a comedic speaker in a carnival event, originally and still usually in the form of a wooden barrel
3. (not regional) a wide vessel used in papermaking
4. carrying basket

   Synonyms: Hotte, Kiepe

Usage notes

• Outside the two specialist senses, speakers now often use the similar sounding (though not closely related) word Bottich as a standard German equivalent for Bütte.

Declension

Declension of Bütte [feminine]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	eine	die	Bütte	die	Bütten
genitive	einer	der	Bütte	der	Bütten
dative	einer	der	Bütte	den	Bütten
accusative	eine	die	Bütte	die	Bütten

Derived terms

• Büttenrede
• Büttner

Further reading

• “Bütte” in Duden online
• “Butte” in Deutsches Wörterbuch von Jacob und Wilhelm Grimm, 16 vols., Leipzig 1854–1961.