neigh

English

Audio recording of a neighing horse

Etymology

From Middle English neighen, from Old English hnǣġan, from Proto-Germanic *hnajjōną (“to neigh”). Cognate with dialectal Dutch neien, Middle Low German neigen, Swedish gnägga, Icelandic hneggja.

Pronunciation

• enPR: nā, IPA^(key): /neɪ/
• Rhymes: -eɪ
• Homophones: nay, nee

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

neigh (plural neighs)

1. The cry of a horse.

Translations

the cry of a horse

• Azerbaijani: kişnərti
• Bashkir: кешнәү (kešnäw)
• Catalan: renill (ca) m, eguí m, aïnada (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 嘶 (zh) (sī)

• Czech: ržání n, řehtání n, zařehtání n
• Danish: vrinsk n
• Dutch: hinnik (nl)
• Esperanto: heno
• Estonian: hirnumine
• Finnish: hirnahdus (fi), hirnunta (fi)
• French: hennissement (fr) m
• Galician: rincho (gl) m
• Georgian: ჭიხვინი (č̣ixvini)
• German: Wiehern n
• Icelandic: hnegg n
• Ido: bramo (io)
• Italian: nitrito (it) m
• Japanese: いななき (inanaki)
• Latin: hinnītus m

• Latvian: zviedziens m
• Maori: ngehengehe
• Norwegian: knegg (no), vrinsk (no)
• Persian: شیهه‎ (fa) (šeyhe)
• Polish: rżenie (pl)
• Portuguese: relincho (pt) m
• Romanian: nechezat (ro) n
• Russian: ржа́ние (ru) n (ržánije)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: њиштање n, њиска f

  Roman: njištanje n, njiska f

• Spanish: relincho (es), relinchido m
• Swedish: gnägg (sv)
• Telugu: సకిలింత (sakilinta)
• Turkish: kişneme (tr), kişneyiş (tr)
• Vietnamese: hí (vi)

Verb

neigh (third-person singular simple present neighs, present participle neighing, simple past and past participle neighed)

1. (of a horse) to make its cry
2. to make a sound similar to a horse's cry

   This fake laughter sounds like a horse neighing.

3. (obsolete) To scoff or sneer.
   • Beaumont and Fletcher

     neighed at his nakedness

Translations

(of a horse) to make its cry

• Arabic: صهيل الفرس‎, صهيل الفرس‎
• Azerbaijani: kişnəmək (az)
• Belarusian: іржа́ць (iržácʹ)
• Catalan: renillar (ca), eguinar (ca), aïnar (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 嘶 (zh) (sī)

• Chuvash: ӑлах (ălah)
• Czech: ržát
• Danish: vrinske, gnægge (obsolete)
• Dutch: hinniken (nl)
• Esperanto: heni
• Estonian: hirnuma
• Finnish: hirnua (fi)
• French: hennir (fr)
• Galician: rinchar (gl)
• Georgian: ჭიხვინებს (č̣ixvinebs)
• German: wiehern (de)

  Alemannic German: hürschele

• Greek: χλιμιντρίζω (el) (chlimintrízo)

  Ancient: χρεμετίζω (khremetízō)

• Hungarian: nyerít (hu)
• Icelandic: hneggja
• Ido: bramar (io)

• Italian: nitrire (it)
• Latin: hinniō
• Latvian: zviegt
• Maori: ngehengehe
• Norman: hîngni
• Norwegian: gneggja, kneggja
• Old English: hnǣġan
• Persian: شیهه کشیدن‎ (fa) (šeyhe kešidan), شهیدن‎ (šehidan)
• Polish: rżeć (pl)
• Portuguese: relinchar (pt)
• Romanian: a necheza, râncheza (ro)
• Russian: ржать (ru) impf (ržatʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: њиштати

  Roman: njištati

• Slovak: erdžať
• Spanish: relinchar (es)
• Swedish: gnägga (sv)
• Tagalog: humalinghing
• Telugu: సకిలించు (te) (sakiliñcu)
• Turkish: kişnemek (tr)
• Ukrainian: іржа́ти (iržáty)
• Vietnamese: hí (vi)
• Westrobothnian: vrin

to make a sound similar to a horses' cry

• Estonian: hirnuma
• Finnish: hirnua (fi)
• Icelandic: hneggja
• Ido: bramar (io)
• Italian: nitrire (it)
• Latvian: zviegt
• Polish: rżeć (pl)

• Romanian: a necheza
• Russian: ржать (ru) impf (ržatʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: њиштати

  Roman: njištati

• Spanish: relinchar (es)
• Swedish: gnägga (sv)
• Tagalog: humalinghing
• Turkish: kişnemek (tr)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.

Translations to be checked

• French: ^{(please verify)} hennir (fr)
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} nitrire (it)

• Norwegian: ^{(please verify)} vrinske (no)

See also

• whinny
• nicker

Anagrams

• ehing, hinge