madeleine

See also: Madeleine

English

WOTD – 6 May 2008

two madeleines

Etymology

Borrowed from French madeleine, from earlier gâteau à la Madeleine, after the given name Madeleine (“Magdalene”), of uncertain reference: attributed in some sources to a 19th-century pastry cook Madeleine Paulmier, whose existence is now considered dubious.
In sense 2, used with reference to the cake's function in the extract below, taken from Marcel Proust's In Search of Lost Time.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈmadəleɪn/, /ˈmad(ə)lɛn/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈmædələn/, /ˌmædəˈleɪn/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

madeleine (plural madeleines)

1. A French type of small gateau or sponge cake, often shaped like an elongated scallop shell.
   • 1981, Marcel Proust; CK Scott Moncrieff & Terence Kilmartin (translators), Swann's Way, Folio Society, published 2005, page 44:

     And suddenly the memory revealed itself. The taste was that of the little piece of madeleine which on Sunday mornings at Combray […] my aunt Léonie used to give me, dipping it first in her own cup of tea or tisane.

   • 2003, Emily Luchetti, A Passion for Desserts, Chronicle Books, page 20:

     Madeleine batter can be made in advance and refrigerated.

2. (figuratively) Something which brings back a memory; a source of nostalgia or evocative memories.
   • 2001, James Carroll, Constantine's Sword, Houghton-Mifflin, page 223:

     The Robe was thus fixed in my mind as a symbol, and in my memory as a madeleine, of Jewish evil.

   • 2005, Roger Ebert, Rogert Ebert's Movie Yearbook, page 784:

     Every five years or so, in the middle of another task, I'll look at them and a particular cover will bring memory flooding back like a madeleine.

Translations

small gateau in the shape of a scallop shell

• Aragonese: madalena f
• Armenian: մադլեն (madlen)
• Asturian: madalena f
• Basque: madalena
• Catalan: magdalena f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 瑪德蓮蛋糕, 玛德莲蛋糕 (Mǎdélián dàngāo)

• Czech: madlenka f
• Estonian: madeleine (et)
• Finnish: madeleine, madeleine-leivos
• French: madeleine (fr) f
• Galician: magdalena f
• German: Madeleine f, n
• Greek: μανταλένα f (mantaléna)
• Hebrew: עוּגִיַּת מָדְלֶן‎‎ f (ugiyát madlén), מָדְלֶן‎‎ f (madlén)

• Hungarian: madeleine (hu)
• Ido: madeleno (io)
• Italian: madeleine f, maddalena f
• Japanese: マドレーヌ (madorēnu)
• Korean: 마들렌 (madeullen)
• Malagasy: madelenina (mg)
• Norwegian: madeleinekake f, m
• Persian: کیک مادلن‎‎ (keyk mâdlen), مادلن‎‎ (mâdlen)
• Polish: magdalenka f
• Portuguese: madalena (pt) f, madeleine f
• Russian: мадле́н m (madlén)
• Spanish: magdalena (es) f
• Swedish: madeleinekaka c
• Turkish: madlen (tr)
• Vietnamese: bánh mađơlen, mađơlen

References

• “madeleine” (US) / “madeleine” (UK) in Oxford Dictionaries, Oxford University Press.
• “madeleine” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

---

Finnish

Etymology

Borrowed from French madeleine.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɑdelɑi̯n/, [ˈmɑ̝de̞lɑ̝i̯n]

Noun

madeleine

1. madeleine (small gateau in the shape of a scallop shell)

   Synonym: madeleine-leivos

Declension

Inflection of madeleine (Kotus type 8/nalle, no gradation)
nominative		madeleine	madeleinet
genitive		madeleinen	madeleinejen
partitive		madeleinea	madeleineja
illative		madeleineen	madeleineihin
		singular	plural
nominative		madeleine	madeleinet
accusative	nom.	madeleine	madeleinet
	gen.	madeleinen
genitive		madeleinen	madeleinejen madeleineinrare
partitive		madeleinea	madeleineja
inessive		madeleinessa	madeleineissa
elative		madeleinesta	madeleineista
illative		madeleineen	madeleineihin
adessive		madeleinella	madeleineilla
ablative		madeleinelta	madeleineilta
allative		madeleinelle	madeleineille
essive		madeleinena	madeleineina
translative		madeleineksi	madeleineiksi
instructive		—	madeleinein
abessive		madeleinetta	madeleineitta
comitative		—	madeleineineen

---

French

Etymology

From earlier gâteau à la Madeleine, after the given name Madeleine (“Magdalene”), of uncertain reference: see more above.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ma.dlɛn/

• Rhymes: -ɛn

Noun

madeleine f (plural madeleines)

1. madeleine (small gateau in the shape of a scallop shell)
2. (figuratively) madeleine (something which brings back a memory)

Further reading

• “madeleine” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).