־ל

See also: ל and ל־

Yiddish

Alternative forms

• ־דל (-dl), ־כל (-khl) — after -n

Etymology

From Middle High German -el, from Old High German -il, from Old High German -ilī. Compare German -lein, dialectal German -el, -erl, Alemannic German -li.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɫ̩/

Suffix

־ל • (-l) n, plural ־לעך (-lekh)

1. Forms diminutive nouns when added to a noun, with umlaut where applicable.
2. Forms fractional numerals when added to the stem of an ordinal numeral.

Usage notes

• In general, Yiddish abhors forming ־ל (-l) diminutives with nouns or roots of nouns ending in ־ן (-n) or indeed ־ל (-l). This may be handled one of two ways:

1. Replace ־ן (-n) with ־ל (-l) with or without formation of umlaut, e.g. ‎קערן (kern) + ‎־ל (-l) → ‎קערל (kerl), or ‎בויגן (boygn) + ‎־ל (-l) → ‎בייגל (beygl).
2. Insert a consonant between ־ן (-n)/־ל (-l) and ־ל (-l). This is most commonly ־ד־ (-d-) or ־כ־ (-kh-), e.g. ‎האָן (hon) + ‎־ל (-l) → ‎הענדל (hendl), ‎באַן (ban) + ‎־ל (-l) → ‎בענכל (benkhl), or ‎שפּיל (shpil) + ‎־ל (-l) → ‎שפּילכל (shpilkhl). This may also apply when the noun ends in a vowel, but the last consonant of the word is ־נ־ (-n-), e.g. ‎אַפֿענע (afene) + ‎־ל (-l) → ‎אַפֿענדל (afendl). In this case, the plural form becomes ־דלעך (-dlekh) or ־כלעך (-khlekh).

• Note that some nouns use both forms as diminutives, e.g. ‎קערן (kern) + ‎־ל (-l) → ‎קערל (kerl) or קערנדל (kerndl), albeit often with different senses.

Derived terms

Yiddish terms suffixed with ־ל

Descendants

• Hebrew: ־לה (-le)

See also

• ־עלע (-ele)