terne

English

Noun

terne (uncountable)

1. An alloy coating made of lead and tin (or, more recently, zinc and tin) and used to cover steel.

---

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tɛʁn/

Etymology 1

From Middle French, from Old French terne (“dull, dim”), from Frankish *tarni (“hidden, obscure”), from Proto-Germanic *darnijaz (“concealed, masked, veiled”), from Proto-Indo-European *dher(ǝ)-, *dhrē- (“to hold, hold tight, support”). Cognate with Old High German tarni (“hidden”), Old English dyrne, dierne (“hidden, secret, obscure, concealed”). More at dern.

Adjective

terne m, f (plural ternes)

1. dull; colourless; drab

Related terms

• ternir

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Latin ternas.

Noun

terne m (plural ternes)

1. (obsolete) trinity, gathering of three people
2. (backgammon, dice games) double-three
3. (bingo) three in a row

Anagrams

• enter, entre, entré, rente, renté

Further reading

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

---

Latin

Adjective

terne

1. vocative masculine singular of ternus

---

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From Old Norse þerna

Noun

terne f, m (definite singular terna or ternen, indefinite plural terner, definite plural ternene)

1. a tern (seabird of family Sternidae)

References

• “terne” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

---

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Old Norse þerna. Akin to English tern.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /²tɛrnə/

Noun

terne f (definite singular terna, indefinite plural terner, definite plural ternene)

1. a tern (seabird of family Sternidae)

References

• “terne” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.