Geißel

See also: Geissel

German

Alternative forms

• Geissel (Switzerland, Liechtenstein)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɡaɪ̯səl/

• Audio:

  (file)

Etymology 1

From Middle High German geisel(e), from Old High German geisila (“whip”). Cognate with Dutch gesel. The spelling with -ß- reflects sporadic devoicing; compare the frequent pronunciations of niesen or Preiselbeere. Its use for distinguishing between Geißel and Geisel (“hostage”) is an arbitrary convention, which fully established itself only around 1900. (The two words are not related but became merged in Early Modern German.)

Noun

Geißel f (genitive Geißel, plural Geißeln)

1. (Southern Germany, Austria, Switzerland) Synonym of Peitsche (“whip”)
2. (elsewhere only) scourge (whip used for flagellation)
3. (figurative) scourge (persistent source of harm, especially when seen as divine punishment)

   Synonyms: Plage, Heimsuchung

4. (biology) flagellum

Declension

Declension of Geißel [feminine]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	eine	die	Geißel	die	Geißeln
genitive	einer	der	Geißel	der	Geißeln
dative	einer	der	Geißel	den	Geißeln
accusative	eine	die	Geißel	die	Geißeln

Derived terms

• begeißelt
• Geißel der Menschheit
• Geißelhieb
• geißeln

 

Etymology 2

See the main lemma.

Noun

Geißel f (genitive Geißel, plural Geißeln) or
Geißel m (strong, genitive Geißels, plural Geißel)

1. Obsolete form (now misspelling) of Geisel (“hostage”)

Further reading

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