Gans

See also: gans, Gäns, and -gans

Dutch

Etymology

From gans.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɣɑns/
• Hyphenation: Gans
• Rhymes: -ɑns

Proper noun

Gans

1. a surname

German

Etymology

From Middle High German gans, from Old High German gans, from Proto-West Germanic *gans, from Proto-Germanic *gans, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰh₂éns.

Compare Low German Gans, Goos, Dutch gans, English goose, Danish gås.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡans/, [ɡans], (colloquial or non-careful speech) [ɡant͡s]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Audio:

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• Homophone: ganz (colloquial or non-careful speech)

Noun

Gans f (genitive Gans, plural Gänse, diminutive Gänschen n or Gänslein n)

1. goose
2. (derogatory, for a female referent) hen; silly goose

   eingebildete Gans ― (please add an English translation of this usage example)

   dumme Gans ― (please add an English translation of this usage example)

   • 1851, Heinrich Heine, “Mythologie”, in Romanzero‎^[1], Hamburg: Hoffmann und Campe:

     Aber tief muß uns empören / Was wir von der Leda lesen– / Welche Gans bist du gewesen, / Daß ein Schwan dich konnt betören!

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

   • 1909 [1901], Thomas Mann, chapter 9, in Buddenbrooks […] ‎^[2], Berlin: Deutsche Buch-Gemeinschaft, →OCLC, part 4, page 222:

     Geh' nur! Meinst du, daß ich dir nachheule, du Gans? Ach nein, Sie irren sich, meine Teuerste!

     Get along with you! Did you think I'd whine after you, you goose? You are very much mistaken, my darling.

Declension

Declension of Gans [feminine]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	eine	die	Gans	die	Gänse
genitive	einer	der	Gans	der	Gänse
dative	einer	der	Gans	den	Gänsen
accusative	eine	die	Gans	die	Gänse

Hyponyms

• Gänserich
• Ganter
• Gössel

Derived terms

• Brandgans
• Festtagsgans
• Gansbraten
• Gänsebraten
• Gänsebrust
• Gänseei
• Gänsefeder
• Gänsefett
• Gänsefleisch
• Gänseflügel
• Gänsefuß
• Gänsefüßchen
• Gänsehals
• Gänsehaut
• Gänsekiel
• Gänseklein
• Gänseküken
• Gänseleber
• Gänsemarsch
• Gänsewein
• Gansfett
• Gansleber
• Graugans
• Martinsgans
• Weihnachtsgans
• Wildgans

Further reading

• “Gans” in Deutsches Wörterbuch von Jacob und Wilhelm Grimm, 16 vols., Leipzig 1854–1961.
• “Gans” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• “Gans” in Duden online
• “Gans”, in PONS (in German), Stuttgart: PONS GmbH, 2001–2025
• “Gans” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon
• Gans on the German Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^de
• Duden: Das Aussprachewörterbuch: Aussprache und Betonung von über 132000 Wörtern und Namen, 7th ed., 2015, p. 389, 2nd column: "Gans ɡans, Gänse 'ɡɛnzə"
• Eva-Maria Krech, Eberhard Stock, Ursula Hirschfeld, Lutz-Christian Anders, with contributions by Walter Haas, Ingrid Hove, Peter Wiesinger and others, and with assistance by Ines Bose, Uwe Hollmach, Baldur Neuber, Deutsches Aussprachewörterbuch, Walter de Gruyter, 2009, p. 528: "Gans ɡans"

Hunsrik

Etymology

From Middle High German gans, from Old High German gans, from Proto-West Germanic *gans, from Proto-Germanic *gans, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰh₂éns.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kans/
• Rhymes: -ans
• Hyphenation: Gans

Noun

Gans f (plural Gens, diminutive Gensje)

1. (zoology) goose

   Die Gens sin bees.

   Geese are brave.

Further reading

• Piter Kehoma Boll (2021) “Gans”, in Dicionário Hunsriqueano Riograndense–Português (in Portuguese), 3rd edition, Ivoti: Riograndenser Hunsrickisch, page 62

Pennsylvania German

Etymology

From Middle High German and Old High German gans, from Proto-West Germanic *gans. Compare German Gans, Dutch gans, English goose, Danish gås.

Noun

Gans f (plural Ganse)

1. goose