Weib
German
Etymology
From Old High German wīb, from Proto-Germanic *wībą.
Pronunciation
Noun
Weib n (genitive Weibs or Weibes, plural Weiber, diminutive Weibchen n or Weiblein n)
- (now often derogatory) woman, broad
- (archaic) woman, wife
- So sprach er [...]: „Weib, meine letzte Stunde ist da; alle Schätze, so ich allein besaß, sind dein und deiner Tochter.“ - Emanuel Schikaneder, Die Zauberflöte (libretto), act II, scene 8.
- So he said [...]: "Wife, my last hour is here; all the treasures that I possessed of myself are yours and your daughter's."
- So sprach er [...]: „Weib, meine letzte Stunde ist da; alle Schätze, so ich allein besaß, sind dein und deiner Tochter.“ - Emanuel Schikaneder, Die Zauberflöte (libretto), act II, scene 8.
Usage notes
- Weib usually cannot be a neutral term for “woman” in contemporary German (for that see Frau). Nonetheless, it is still rather a current word and may be more or less pejorative depending on context. It is most often heard among men, notably in the plural, in which case it has macho ring to it, without being particularly abusive: Du weißt ja, wie die Weiber sind... − “Well, you know what women are like...” Perhaps comparable to the use of broad in American English.
- In older German (well into the 19th century), Weib was a normal word for a woman, usually one of the “common people”, or someone's wife. This more neutral sense is still retained in many derived terms, particularly weiblich (“female”).
Declension
Derived terms
See also
Further reading
- “Weib” in Duden online
Hunsrik
Pronunciation
Noun
Weib n (plural Weiver)
Further reading
Pennsylvania German
Etymology
Compare German Weib, Dutch wijf, English wife.
Noun
Weib n (plural Weiwer)
Categories:
- German terms inherited from Old High German
- German terms derived from Old High German
- German terms inherited from Proto-Germanic
- German terms derived from Proto-Germanic
- German 1-syllable words
- German terms with IPA pronunciation
- German terms with audio links
- German lemmas
- German nouns
- German neuter nouns
- German derogatory terms
- German terms with archaic senses
- Hunsrik 1-syllable words
- Hunsrik terms with IPA pronunciation
- Hunsrik lemmas
- Hunsrik nouns
- Hunsrik neuter nouns
- Pennsylvania German lemmas
- Pennsylvania German nouns
- Pennsylvania German neuter nouns