Heuschrecke

German

Alternative forms

• Heuschreck (Austria, Switzerland)

Etymology

From Middle High German höuschrecke, from Old High German houwiscrecko. Analysable as Heu (“hay”) +‎ schrecken (“to jump up”). Originally a masculine that developed into a feminine under the influence of the frequently used plural (a common development in modern German); compare the southern alternative form.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈhɔʏ̯ˌʃrɛkə/

• Audio (Germany (Berlin)):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛkə

Noun

Heuschrecke f (genitive Heuschrecke, plural Heuschrecken)

1. An orthopteran, chiefly a grasshopper or bush-cricket

   Synonyms: (informal) Grashüpfer, Heupferd

2. (colloquial, derogatory) an investor who buys enterprises or properties and deals with them in a way that harms the local population
   1. (especially East Germany, historical) an investor from West Germany who did this in the former GDR, exploiting the chaos following German reunification
3. (historical) The Heuschrecke 10, a prototype WW2 era tracked weapons carrier.

Declension

Declension of Heuschrecke [feminine]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	eine	die	Heuschrecke	die	Heuschrecken
genitive	einer	der	Heuschrecke	der	Heuschrecken
dative	einer	der	Heuschrecke	den	Heuschrecken
accusative	eine	die	Heuschrecke	die	Heuschrecken

Hyponyms

• Blattheuschrecke
• Blauflügelige Ödlandschrecke
• Feldheuschrecke
• Gespenstheuschrecke
• Laubheuschrecke
• Stabheuschrecke
• Wanderheuschrecke
• Wüstenheuschrecke

Related terms

• Schrecke
• Heuschreckenfraß, Heuschreckenplage, Heuschreckenschwarm
• Heuschreckenkapitalismus

Further reading

• “Heuschrecke” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• “Heuschrecke” in Duden online