Qualle

German

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkva.lə/

• audio

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• Rhymes: -alə

Etymology 1

16th century, from Middle Low German *qualle. Compare modern Low German Quall, Dutch kwal (17th c.). In spite of the earlier High German attestation, the Low German origin is agreed upon for both natural and dialectological reasons. Probably from quellen (like etymology 2 below). However, an alternative theory derives it from a word for “curdled, coagulated”, from Middle Low German quagel (“rennet”), from Old Saxon quagul, from Latin coagulum.

Noun

Qualle f (genitive Qualle, plural Quallen)

1. jellyfish

Declension

Declension of Qualle [feminine]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	eine	die	Qualle	die	Quallen
genitive	einer	der	Qualle	der	Quallen
dative	einer	der	Qualle	den	Quallen
accusative	eine	die	Qualle	die	Quallen

Etymology 2

From Middle High German qualle (“fat person”), from quellen (“to swell by soaking up water”).

Noun

Qualle f (genitive Qualle, plural Quallen)

1. (colloquial, derogatory) fatso

Further reading

• “Qualle” in Duden online
• “Qualle” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache