Wachtel

German

Etymology

From (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Middle High German wahtel, from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Old High German wahtala, from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Proto-Germanic *hwahtilō (compare Middle Dutch wachtele), diminutive of (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Proto-Indo-European *kʷoḱt- (compare Latin co(c)turnīx, Lithuanian vaštaka, Sanskrit चातक (cātaka) ‘pied cuckoo’), metathesis of *u̯ortokʷ- (compare Dutch kwartel, Greek ορτύκι (ortýki), Sanskrit वर्तका (vartakā), Persian ورتیج (vartij), Central Kurdish ھەوێردە (hawērda)).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈvaxtəl/, [ˈvaχtəl], [ˈvaχtl̩]

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

Wachtel f (genitive Wachtel, plural Wachteln)

1. quail
2. screw (i.e., prison guard) (slang, pejorative)

Further reading

• “Wachtel” in Duden online