Kauz
German edit
Etymology edit
From Middle High German kūz, kūze, from Old High German *kūz, from Proto-Germanic *kūts (“bird of prey”), from Proto-Indo-European *gū- (“to cry, screech”). Cognate with Old English cȳta (“kite, bittern”). See kite.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
Kauz m (strong, genitive Kauzes, plural Käuze)
- owl; (specifically) strigid
- (figurative) crank, odd fellow, codger
- 1903, Thomas Mann, Tristan[1]; republished as Helen Tracy Lowe-Porter, transl., Stories of Three Decades, 1922, page 144:
- Ein Kauz, ein ganz wunderlicher Kauz! Herrn Klöterjahns Gattin dachte zuweilen nach über ihn, denn sie hatte sehr viel Zeit zum Nachdenken.
- An odd sort, a very odd sort. Herr Klöterjahn's wife thought about him sometimes; for she had much leisure for thought.
Declension edit
Declension of Kauz [masculine, strong]