See also: .onion and Onion

English edit

 
English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia
 
Onions.
 
A sliced onion.

Alternative forms edit

Etymology edit

From Middle English onyoun, oynoun, from Old French oignon, from Latin ūniōnem, accusative of ūniō (onion, large pearl), which had also been borrowed into Old English as yne, ynnelēac (onion) (> Middle English hynne-leac, henne-leac). Also displaced Middle English knelek (literally knee-leek) and the inherited term ramsons.

Pronunciation edit

  • IPA(key): /ˈʌn.jən/
  • (file)
  • (file)
  • (Canada) IPA(key): /ˈʌŋ.jɪn/
  • (dialectal, obsolete) IPA(key): /ˈɪŋ.ən/, /ˈɪn.jən/[1][2]
  • Rhymes: -ʌnjən

Noun edit

onion (plural onions)

  1. A monocotyledonous plant (Allium cepa), allied to garlic, used as vegetable and spice.
  2. The bulb of such a plant.
  3. A plant of the genus Allium as a whole. (Can we add an example for this sense?)
  4. (slang, of a drug) An ounce.
  5. (obsolete baseball slang) A ball.
  6. (obsolete, slang) A watch-seal.
    • 1846, George William MacArthur Reynolds, The Mysteries of London, page 60:
      [] M was a Magsman, frequenting Pall-Mall; / N was a Nose that turned chirp on his pal; / O was an Onion, possessed by a swell; / P was a Pannie, done niblike and well. []
  7. Alternative letter-case form of Onion (an inhabitant of Bermuda; a Bermudian)

Synonyms edit

  • (vegetable): violet (UK dialect)

Derived terms edit

Descendants edit

  • Bislama: anian
  • Tok Pisin: anian
  • Maori: aniana

Translations edit

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ Stanley, Oma (1937) “I. Vowel Sounds in Stressed Syllables”, in The Speech of East Texas (American Speech: Reprints and Monographs; 2), New York: Columbia University Press, →DOI, →ISBN, § 12, page 27.
  2. ^ Bingham, Caleb (1808) “Improprieties in Pronunciation, common among the people of New-England”, in The Child's Companion; Being a Conciſe Spelling-book [] [1], 12th edition, Boston: Manning & Loring, →OCLC, page 75.

Welsh edit

Noun edit

onion m (singulative onionyn)

  1. Alternative form of wynwyn (onions)

Mutation edit

Welsh mutation
radical soft nasal h-prothesis
onion unchanged unchanged honion
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

References edit

  • R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “wynwyn, wnion, winion, winiwn, &c.”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies