zäh

See also: zah and zǡh

Alemannic German

Numeral

zäh

1. Alternative form of zää

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German

Alternative forms

• zähe (archaic)

Etymology

(deprecated template usage)

From Middle High German zǣhe, from Old High German zāh, from Proto-Germanic *tanhuz (“fitting; clinging; tenacious; tough”), from Proto-Indo-European *denḱ- (“to bite”). Cognate with English tough, Scots teuch (“tough”), tūch (“tough”), Dutch taai (“tough”), Low German tage, taag, taë, taa (“tough”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tsɛː/ (standard; used naturally in western Germany and Switzerland)
• IPA^(key): /tseː/ (overall more common; particularly northern and eastern regions)
• Homophone: Zeh (regional)

• Audio:

  (file)

Adjective

zäh (comparative zäher, superlative am zähsten or am zähesten)

1. tough
2. tenacious, dogged
3. chewy, stringy
4. viscous

Further reading

• “zäh” in Duden online