gubbe
Norwegian Bokmål edit
Etymology edit
Unknown, but some believe it to be a shortening of the word godbonde ("good-farmer" or "husband"), also thought to be borrowed directly from Swedish gubbe. Probably akin to the Nynorsk verb guve ("to stand crouching") which is from Old Norse gaupn ("something bent").
Noun edit
gubbe m (definite singular gubben, indefinite plural gubber, definite plural gubbene)
- An old man, geezer, husband, man of the house (lovingly or derogatory)
- En hvithåret gubbe gikk forbi.
- A white-haired old man walked by.
- Jeg skal spørre gubben
- I'll ask the man of the house.
- Hva er det den gamle gubben vil nå, da?
- What does the old geezer want now?
- A stick of dynamite
- Noen kasta gubber mot butikken min!
- Someone threw dynamite sticks at my store!
Synonyms edit
References edit
- “gubbe” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
Norwegian Nynorsk edit
Etymology edit
Unknown. Compare Swedish gubbe.
Noun edit
gubbe m (definite singular gubben, indefinite plural gubbar, definite plural gubbane)
- An old man, geezer, husband, man of the house (lovingly or derogatory)
- Ein kvithåra gubbe gjekk forbi.
- A white-haired old man walked by.
- Eg skal spørja gubben
- I'll ask the man of the house.
- Kva er det den gamle gubben vil no, då?
- What does the old geezer want now?
- A stick of dynamite
- Nokon kasta gubbar mot butikken min!
- Someone threw dynamite sticks at my store!
Synonyms edit
Derived terms edit
References edit
- “gubbe” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
Swedish edit
Etymology edit
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
gubbe c
- (informal, sometimes derogatory) an older or elderly man
- Gå rakt fram, mot gubbarna där borta
- Go straight ahead, towards those old men over there
- gubbar och gummor
- old men and women
- (informal) one's husband
- Jag gick till teatern med min gubbe
- I went to the theater with my husband
- (informal, by extension, often endearing) a young boy; a little man, a little guy
- lilla gubben
- little man
- (informal) a (male) character (especially in a game or artwork), a guy (referred to generically)
- Hur många gubbar ska jag anfalla med?
- How many guys/units should I attack with?
- ett plattformsspel med en gubbe som hoppar
- a platformer with a guy that jumps
- samla på Warhammer-gubbar
- collect Warhammer miniatures
- Hon gillade att rita konstiga gubbar
- She liked to draw strange characters
- (colloquial) a cheeky attempt
- Nej du! Den gubben går inte!
- Nope! Not falling for that one!
- (dialectal) a small lump
- (slang) one gram (of an illegal drug)
- 2021, Diamant Salihu, Tills alla dör [Until everyone dies], Mondial, →ISBN, page 79:
- Fem »gubbar« på 0,8 gram styck kunde lätt gömmas i fickan. Han sålde en »gubbe« kokain för mellan 800 och 1 000 kronor.
- Five 0.8 gram pieces could easily be hidden in one's pocket. He sold one "gram" of cocaine for between 800 and 1 000 kronor.
Usage notes edit
- Sometimes used ironically to refer to friends, regardless of age, especially in the plural (similar to old chap in English).
- The collocation "gammal gubbe" is common towards the elderly end of the scale (or when emphasizing age, in a sometimes derogatory sense).
- Another (jocular) colloquial plural is gubbs.
Declension edit
| Declension of gubbe | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | Plural | |||
| Indefinite | Definite | Indefinite | Definite | |
| Nominative | gubbe | gubben | gubbar | gubbarna |
| Genitive | gubbes | gubbens | gubbars | gubbarnas |
Derived terms edit
- dynamitgubbe (“stick of dynamite”)
- farsgubbe (“dad, old man”)
- flyttgubbe (“mover”)
- ful gubbe (“dirty old man”)
- fullgubbe
- gubbaktig
- gubben i lådan (“jack-in-the-box”)
- gubben i månen (“the man in the moon”)
- gubbig
- gubbjävel
- gubbkeps (“flat cap”)
- gubbröra
- gubbsjuk
- gubbslem
- gubbsnygg (“old man handsome”)
- gubbstrutt
- gubbtjyv
- halmgubbe (“straw man”)
- jordgubbe (“strawberry”)
- korvgubbe
- krutgubbe
- lyktgubbe
- sjutton gubbar
- snuskgubbe
- snögubbe (“snowman”)
- sopgubbe (“garbage man”)
- sömngubbe (“sleep (in the corner of the eye)”)
- tomtegubbe
Descendants edit
- → Finnish: gube