enigst

Dutch

Alternative forms

• (obsolete) eenigst

Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

From enig +‎ -st.

Adjective

enigst (not comparable)

1. (colloquial, now often proscribed) only, single

   Synonym: enig

   Dat was zijn enigste kans. ― That was his only chance.

   Zij is een enigst kind. ― She is an only child.

Declension

Declension of enigst
uninflected	enigst
inflected	enigste
comparative	—
		positive
predicative/adverbial		—
indefinite	m./f. sing.	enigste
	n. sing.	enigst
	plural	enigste
definite		enigste
partitive		—

Pronoun

enigst (plural enigsten, inflected enigste)

1. (colloquial, now often proscribed) only one/thing

   Jij bent de enigste die er bezwaar tegen heeft. ― You are the only one who objects to it.

   Het enigst/enigste dat ik zie is bomen. ― The only thing I see is trees.

Usage notes

• The inflected form enigste is nowadays almost always used when this word is used as a pronoun (as opposed to uninflected enigst), but this has not historically always been the case.
• Historically this word was not proscribed (it is used in classics such as the eighteenth-century Nederlandsche Vogelen).

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Adjective

enigst

1. superlative degree of enig

Anagrams

• gisten