Spiegel

See also: spiegel

English

Alternative forms

• Spegal

Etymology

From German Spiegel.

Proper noun

Spiegel (plural Spiegels)

1. A surname from German.

German

Spiegel (sense 1)

Spiegel of a deer (sense 5.3)

Etymology

From Middle High German spiegel, from Old High German spiegal, spēgal, from Proto-West Germanic *spēgl (“mirror”). Cognate with Hunsrik Spieghel.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈʃpiːɡl̩/
• (Germany)

  (file)

• (Germany)

  (file)

• (Austria)

  (file)

Noun

Spiegel m (strong, genitive Spiegels, plural Spiegel, diminutive Spiegelchen n or Spieglein n)

1. mirror (smooth surface, usually made of glass with reflective material painted on the underside, that reflects light)
   • 1812, Brüder Grimm, Schneewittchen‎^[1]:

     […] Sie hatte auch einen Spiegel, vor den trat sie alle Morgen und fragte: / „Spieglein, Spieglein an der Wand: / wer ist die schönste Frau in dem ganzen Land?“

     She had a Mirror before which she came every morning. She'd ask: Mirror, Mirror, on the wall, who is the fairest Woman in the entire land?"

   Sie hatte einen großen Spiegel. ― She had a large mirror.

2. level (of a liquid within a delimited space or a substance in a liquid mixture)

   Synonyms: Pegel, Konzentration

   Meeresspiegel ― sea level

   Alkoholspiegel ― alcohol level (amount in blood, for example)

   Testosteronspiegel ― testosterone level

3. surface (flat overside or up-side of a liquid)

   Synonym: Wasseroberfläche

4. schematic overview, table (two-dimensional presentation of data)

   Synonym: Tabelle

   Notenspiegel ― transcript (as in a set of notes that mirrors the conversation)

   Gehaltsspiegel ― salary tables (pay levels)

5. white or light-coloured mark (on an animal)
   1. on the forehead of horses and cattle

      Das Pony hatte einen hübsch geformten Spiegel auf der Stirn.

      The pony had a nicely shaped mark on the forehead.

   2. on the wing of a goose, capercaillie, or black cock
   3. on the hindquarters of deer

Declension

Declension of Spiegel [masculine, strong]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	ein	der	Spiegel	die	Spiegel
genitive	eines	des	Spiegels	der	Spiegel
dative	einem	dem	Spiegel	den	Spiegeln
accusative	einen	den	Spiegel	die	Spiegel

Derived terms

• spiegelartig
• spiegelig
• spiegeln
• Spiegelung
• Spiegelein
• Spiegelchen

Related terms

• Alkoholspiegel (“alcohol level”)
• Augenspiegel (“ophthalmoscope”)
• Autospiegel (“car mirror”)
• Blutspiegel (“blood level”)
• Cholesterinspiegel (“blood cholesterol level”)
• Flügelspiegel
• Glasspiegel (“glass mirror”)
• Hauptspiegel
• Kristallspiegel (“crystal mirror”)
• Medaillenspiegel (“medals table”)
• Meeresspiegel (“sea level”)
• Metallspiegel (“metal mirror”)
• Natriumspiegel (“sodium level”)
• Plasmaspiegel (“plasma level”)
• Rückspiegel (“rear-view mirror”)
• Serumspiegel (“serum level”)
• Spiegelbild (“mirror image, reflection”)
• Spiegelebene (“mirror plane”)
• Spiegelfläche (“mirror surface”)
• Spiegelglanz (“mirror finish”)
• spiegelgleich
• Spiegelreflexkamera
• Spiegelsaal
• Spiegelstrich
• spiegelsymmetrisch
• Spiegeltest (“mirror test”)
• spiegelverkehrt (“mirror-inverted”)
• Taschenspiegel (“pocket mirror”)
• Wandspiegel (“wall mirror”)
• Wasserspiegel (“water level”)

 

Descendants

• → Esperanto: spegulo
• → Kashubian: szpédżel
• → Romansch: spievel, spieghel, spejel
• → Russian: с̌пи́гел (špígel)

Further reading

• Spiegel (Begriffsklärung) on the German Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^de
• “Spiegel” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• “Spiegel” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon
• “Spiegel” in Duden online