pølse

See also: pölse and polse

Danish

Etymology

Inherited from Old Danish pølse (attested since 1383). Unknown origin. Compare Swedish pölsa and Norwegian Nynorsk pølse.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈpʰølsə]

Noun

pølse c (singular definite pølsen, plural indefinite pølser)

1. sausage, banger
2. (childish) poop (excrement)

   Jeg lavede en pølse på wc.

   I took a poo in the toilet.

Declension

Declension of pølse

common gender	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	pølse	pølsen	pølser	pølserne
genitive	pølses	pølsens	pølsers	pølsernes

Derived terms

• rød pølse

Related terms

• hotdog

Descendants

• → Greenlandic: pølse
• → Swedish: pölse (transliteration)
  • → Swedish: pølse

Further reading

• “pølse” in Den Danske Ordbog
• “pølse” in Ordbog over det danske Sprog

Greenlandic

Etymology

Borrowed from Danish pølse.

Noun

pølse (plural pølsit)

1. sausage
   • 2002, Stephen Hammeken, Harry Potter Ujarallu Inuunartoq, Nuuk: Atuakkiorfik, translation of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J. K. Rowling, →ISBN, page 153:

     Puugutarsuit nerrivimmi saavaniittut nerisassanik qammipput. Nerisassat taama mamarunartigisut taamalu amerlatigisut takusimanngisaannarpai. Nersussuit neqaat siatat, kukkukuuaqqat siatat, savaaqqat neqaat saaniminertallit siatat, puulukip quttoraa, pølsit assigiinngitsorpassuit, baconit puulukillu siatat, naatsiiat uusut siatallu, puulukit aserortikkat siatat, eertat, guleruuat, miseqqat, ketchup minnerunngitsumillu mamakujuttut pebermyntepastillit.

     The dishes in front of him were now piled with food. He had never seen so many things he liked to eat on one table: roast beef, roast chicken, pork chops and lamb chops, sausages, bacon and steak, boiled potatoes, roast potatoes, chips, Yorkshire pudding, peas, carrots, gravy, ketchup, and, for some strange reason, mint humbugs.

Synonyms

• immigaq

Norwegian Bokmål

A pølse served in a lompe.

Etymology

The modern written form became established in Norwegian toward the end of the 19th century. It may have been introduced or reinforced through Danish pølse (“sausage”), whose Old Danish predecessor pylse (“sausage”) is attested since 1383, but the immediate route into Norwegian is not securely established. Ultimately unknown.

Compare Norwegian Nynorsk pølse, dialectal pylse and pylsa, Danish pølse, Icelandic pylsa and Faroese pylsa (“sausage”), and Swedish pölsa (“sausage filling; a dish of minced offal and grain”). An Old Norse word for “sausage” was bjúga (“sausage”); no direct Old Norse ancestor of pølse is securely attested.

The North Germanic forms have tentatively been compared with Middle High German pole and pule, and Dutch peul (“pea or bean pod”), possibly from the same root as bule (“bulge, swelling”). This would suggest a semantic development from “pod” or “swollen casing” to “stuffed sausage”, but the comparison is uncertain; a Proto-Germanic or Proto-Indo-European reconstruction should therefore not be presented as established.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpœl.sə/
• Rhymes: -œlsə
• Hyphenation: pøl‧se

Noun

pølse f or m (definite singular pølsa or pølsen, indefinite plural pølser, definite plural pølsene)

1. a sausage; seasoned chopped or minced meat, offal, blood, or similar material stuffed into an elongated casing and cooked, smoked, or cured

   rosinen i pølsa — the highlight or best part, especially one coming at the end; the icing on the cake

   allting har en ende så nær som pølsen, den har to — “everything has an end except the sausage, which has two”; a humorous proverb emphasizing that everything eventually ends

   det er ingen sak med den pølsen som er for lang — “a sausage which is too long is no problem”; it is better to have too much than too little

   • 1985, Tom Lotherington, Den tredje tjeneren:

     det er alltid råd med den pølsa som er for lang

     There is always a way to deal with a sausage that is too long.

   en pølse i slaktetiden — an insignificant item or event in a much larger context

   • 1874, Henrik Ibsen, Peer Gynt, page 198:

     man gælder som en pølse i slagtetiden

     One counts for as much as a sausage at slaughtering time.

   • 1971, Johan Borgen, Mitt hundeliv, page 122:

     en pølse i slaktetiden? Nåja, alle monne drar

     A sausage at slaughtering time? Well, every little helps.

   • 1988, Hans Børli, Med øks og lyre, page 107:

     kom du i skade for å felle av ei smågran … hva betyr vel ei pølse i slaktetida?

     If you happened to cut down a little spruce … what does one sausage at slaughtering time matter?

   • 1995, Roy Jacobsen, Trygve Bratteli, page 366:

     at Trygve Bratteli ikke får noen kreditt … er nærmest for ei pølse i slaktetida å regne

     That Trygve Bratteli receives no credit … is almost insignificant in the larger context.

   • 1890, Knut Hamsun, Sult [Hunger], page 6:

     ved en slagterbutik stod en kone … og spekulered paa pølser til middag

     Outside a butcher's shop stood a woman … considering sausages for dinner.

   • 1899, Jonas Lie, Faste Forland, page 146:

     [en] stopper sig med gevinst og fordel som en pølse

     [A person] stuffs himself with profit and advantage like a sausage.

   • 1917, Hans E. Kinck, Kirken brænder, page 171:

     her var mus i pølsen!

     There were mice in the sausage here—something was wrong!

   • 1918, Hans E. Kinck, Sneskavlen brast I, page 251:

     her var nok meget mus i pylsa

     There certainly was a lot wrong here.

   • 1996, Unni Lindell, Slangebæreren, page 125:

     skoletannlegen … hadde fingre som pølser

     The school dentist … had fingers like sausages.

   • 1999, Tonje Røed, Ferie, page 145:

     det rykende fatet [er] breddfullt av … hvite pølser

     The steaming platter is filled to the brim with … white sausages.

   • 2002, Marita Fossum, Verden utenfor, page 69:

     i Danmark er pølsene røde og badestrendene hvite

     In Denmark the sausages are red and the beaches are white.

   • 2002, Dag Solstad, 16-07-41, page 170:

     jeg sto i min fine dress og spiste pølse med brød og lompe

     I stood in my fine suit and ate a sausage with a bun and a lompe.

   • 2005, Tore Renberg, Kompani Orheim, page 58:

     Sara … løftet fatet. «Hvem skal ha den siste pølsa?»

     Sara … lifted the platter. “Who wants the last sausage?”

2. something round, usually soft and elongated, resembling a sausage
   • 1929, Sigurd Hoel, Ingenting, page 24:

     en tykk rød pølse av en fettvalk

     a thick red sausage of a roll of fat

   • 1959, Jens Bjørneboe, Blåmann, page 12:

     fra en snehvit liten pølse ble han efter hvert en høy, mager gutt

     From a snow-white little sausage, he gradually became a tall, thin boy.

   • 1996, Tove Nilsen, Skyskrapersommer, page 252:

     En vraltende pølse med skotskrutete frakk

     A waddling sausage in a tartan coat.

   • 2010, Sverre Henmo, Mesterskapet, page 53:

     hun … bretter [joggebuksen] ned til en pølse i livet

     She … folds [the sweatpants] down into a roll around her waist.

   • 2013, Lise Finckenhagen, Slikkepott, page 256:

     form deigen til en tykk pølse og kjevl den ut til et rektangel

     Shape the dough into a thick sausage and roll it out into a rectangle.

   • 2021, Andreas Tjernshaugen, Reven, page 15:

     Pølsene er rundt en og en halv centimeter tjukke

     The sausage-shaped droppings are about one and a half centimetres thick.

   1. (slang) a penis
      • 1997, Ola Bauer, Magenta, page 70:

        guttene … stirret på de stenhårde pølsene sine

        The boys … stared at their rock-hard sausages.

Derived terms

• blodpølse (“blood sausage”)
• chorizopølse (“chorizo sausage”)
• ertepølse (“pea sausage”)
• fiskepølse (“fish sausage”)
• fleskepølse (“pâté-like pork cold cut”)
• fårepølse (“mutton sausage”)
• grillpølse (“grilling sausage”)
• grynpølse (“sausage containing cooked groats”)
• hakkepølse (“chopped-meat sausage”)
• ildpølse (“pyrosome”)
• innmatpølse (“offal sausage”)
• innmatspølse (“offal sausage”)
• kjøttpølse (“meat sausage”)
• knakkpølse (“knackwurst”)
• leverpølse (“liver sausage”)
• medisterpølse (“medister sausage”)
• morrpølse (“traditional offal sausage”)
• ostepølse (“cheese sausage”)
• pølsearm (“thick, sausage-like arm”)
• pølsebod (“sausage stand”)
• pølsebrød (“hot dog bun”)
• pølsebu (“sausage stand”)
• pølsedeig (“sausage mixture”)
• pølseende (“end of a sausage”)
• pølsefabrikk (“sausage factory”)
• pølsefest (“party where sausages are served”)
• pølsefinger (“thick, sausage-like finger”)
• pølseformet (“sausage-shaped”)
• pølsehorn (“sausage-stuffing horn”)
• pølsejern (“bulb flat”)
• pølsekjører (“sausage delivery driver”)
• pølseklype (“sausage tongs”)
• pølsemaker (“sausage maker”)
• pølsemakerfag (“sausage-making trade”)
• pølsemakeri (“sausage making; sausage factory”)
• pølsemaskin (“sausage-making machine”)
• pølsemat (“sausage filling; sausages as food”)
• pølsepinne (“sausage-closing peg; sausage-roasting stick”)
• pølseskinn (“sausage casing; tight-fitting garment”)
• pølsesnabb (“piece or end of a sausage”)
• pølsesnakk (“nonsense, silly talk”)
• pølsespidd (“sausage skewer; sausage-roasting stick”)
• pølsespyd (“sausage skewer; sausage-roasting stick”)
• pølsestopper (“sausage stuffer; person who stuffs sausages”)
• pølsetarm (“intestine used as sausage casing”)
• pølsete (“sausage-like, thick and rounded”)
• pølsetermos (“thermos for keeping sausages warm”)
• pølsetråd (“sausage twine”)
• pølsevev (“nonsense”)
• pølsevogn (“hot dog cart”)
• rullepølse (“rolled and pressed meat cold cut”)
• rødpølse (“red sea cucumber; Danish red sausage”)
• røkepølse (“smoked sausage”)
• røykepølse (“smoked sausage”)
• salamipølse (“salami sausage”)
• saltpølse (“salted sausage”)
• servelatpølse (“cervelat sausage”)
• sjøpølse (“sea cucumber”)
• spekepølse (“cured sausage”)
• stekepølse (“frying sausage”)
• svartpølse (“dark cured sausage”)
• svinepølse (“pork sausage”)
• utsendingspølse (“sausage sent as a gift after slaughtering”)
• ventepølse (“sausage eaten while waiting for a meal”)
• viltpølse (“game sausage”)
• vindpølse (“windsock”)
• wienerpølse (“Vienna sausage”)
• ølpølse (“beer sausage”)

References

• “pølse” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
• “pølse” in Det Norske Akademis ordbok (NAOB).
• “pylse” in Gammeldansk Ordbog.
• “pølse” in Store norske leksikon.

Anagrams

• løpes

Norwegian Nynorsk

Alternative forms

Dialectal forms

• pýsse (Setesdal)
• pysje (Nord-Gudbrandsdalen, Folldal)
• pulse (Valdres)
• pæsj, pøls (Trøndelag)
• pylse (Telemark, Setesdal)
• pølsa, pylsa (Rogaland)
• påsj (dialectal)

Etymology

Uncertain. Compare Danish pølse, Swedish pölsa (dialectal pylsa), Faroese pylsa and modern Icelandic pylsa.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [²pølsə], [²pøʂə]

Noun

pølse f (definite singular pølsa, indefinite plural pølser, definite plural pølsene)

1. a sausage or hot dog

References

• “pølse” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Swedish

Two red Danish sausages.

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from Danish pølse.

Noun

pølse c

1. (humorous) alternative spelling of pölse (“red Danish sausage”)

   Synonym: rød pølse

   • 1964, Karl Gerhard, Med mitt goda minne, page 121:

     Fatima och jag blev så småningom vänner. Det började med en femtioöring till pølse.

     Fatima and I eventually became friends. It started with a fifty öre coin for Danish hotdog.

   • 2018 July 17, “25 tips till godaste maten i Köpenhamn [25 tips for the tastiest food in Copenhagen]”, in Aftonbladet:

     Världsberömda restaurangen Noma, Röd pølse och smörrebröd i alla ära.

     The world-famous restaurant Noma, red sausages, and smørrebrød are all well and good.

   • 2021 January 18, Erik Adell, “Nu har det serverats pølser på Danmarks gator i 100 år [Sausages have now been served on the streets of Denmark for 100 years]”, in P4 Malmöhus, Sveriges Radio:

     Vad det då kostade med en korv med bröd? 30 öre. 25 för pølsen och 5 för brödet.

     What did it cost for sausage with bread? 30 öre. 25 for the sausage and 5 for the bread.

   • 2023 December 17, TT News Agency, “Danskt sedelkaos – handlare vill stoppa småköp [Danish banknote chaos – retailers want to stop small purchases]”, in Dagens Industri:

     Är det okej att betala sin pølse med en 1.000-lapp? Nej, tycker danska handlare.

     Is it acceptable to pay for your sausage with a 1,000-krone note? No, say Danish retailers.

See also

• pølsevagn