Schmalz

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See also: schmalz

German[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /ʃmal(t)s/, [ʃmalt͡s]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Middle High German smalz, from Old High German smalz, from Proto-West Germanic *smalt ((molten) fat, lard), an ablaut derivative of *smeltaną. Doublet of Emaille. The figurative sense in part as a backformation from schmalzig.

Noun[edit]

Schmalz n or m (strong, genitive Schmalzes, plural Schmalze)

  1. (usually uncountable) grease, lard
  2. (derogatory) schmaltz (something cheesy or excessively sentimental, e.g., music), corniness
  3. (Austria) imprisonment for illegal activity
  4. (Vienna) english (spin imparted on a billiard ball by hitting it on the side)
Usage notes[edit]
  • The word is originally and predominantly a neuter. Alternative masculine use is common in the sense “schmaltz, corniness”, but is also met with in the literal sense.
Declension[edit]
Derived terms[edit]
Related terms[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

Attested in the 13th century in Schleswig-Holstein, thought to derive from Middle Low German smal (small), from Proto-Germanic *smalaz. Compare the English surname Small, Smalls.

Alternative forms[edit]

Proper noun[edit]

Schmalz m or f (proper noun, strong, genitive Schmalz' or Schmalzens or (with an article) Schmalz, plural Schmalz or Schmalzens)

  1. a surnamefamously held by:
    1. Valentin Schmalz (1572–1622), German Socinian theologian
Declension[edit]
Related terms[edit]

References[edit]

Luxembourgish[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From the Middle High German smalz, from the Old High German smalz, from the Proto-West Germanic *smalt ((molten) fat, lard), an ablaut derivative of *smeltaną.

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

Schmalz n (uncountable)

  1. lard, grease

Derived terms[edit]