Nelke
German edit
Etymology edit
Borrowed from Middle Low German nēgelke(n) (“little spike, nail”), from Old Saxon nagal (“nail”). Doublet of Nägelchen and Nägelein (archaic).
Low German-looking forms are already found in Middle High German negelkīn alongside negelīn; the contraction is first attested in Central German Nelekin. The feminine form in -e is a backformation from the plural. The name is due to the typical form of cloves; compare Latin clāvulus (“clove”), from clāvus (“nail”), of which the German form may be a loan translation.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
Nelke f (genitive Nelke, plural Nelken)
- clove (aromatic flower buds of Syzygium aromaticum) [from 13th c.]
- Synonym: Gewürznelke
- carnation, pink (Dianthus caryophyllus) (named by analogy for its clove-like smell) [from 15th c.]
Declension edit
Declension of Nelke [feminine]