Tattoo

See also: tattoo

German

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /taˈtuː/, /tɛˈtuː/, /ˈtɛtu/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: Tat‧too
• Rhymes: -uː

Etymology 1

Borrowed from English tattoo. The rather common pronunciation with initial stress perhaps partly from a mistakenly assumed English form, but at least reinforced by the related words tätowieren, Tätowierung (both with unstressed -o- and often secondary stress on -ä-).

Noun

Tattoo n or (rare) m (strong, genitive Tattoos, plural Tattoos)

1. tattoo

   Synonym: Tätowierung

Usage notes

• Generally neuter. The masculine gender is rare.

Declension

Declension of Tattoo [neuter // masculine (rare), strong]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	ein	das, der	Tattoo	die	Tattoos
genitive	eines	des	Tattoos	der	Tattoos
dative	einem	dem	Tattoo	den	Tattoos
accusative	ein, einen	das, den	Tattoo	die	Tattoos

Etymology 2

Borrowed from English tattoo, from Dutch taptoe.

Noun

Tattoo m (strong, genitive Tattoos, plural Tattoos)

1. (military) tattoo (drum or bugle signal ordering soldiers to return to their quarters)

   Synonym: Zapfenstreich

2. (military) tattoo (military display or pageant)

Declension

Declension of Tattoo [masculine, strong]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	ein	der	Tattoo	die	Tattoos
genitive	eines	des	Tattoos	der	Tattoos
dative	einem	dem	Tattoo	den	Tattoos
accusative	einen	den	Tattoo	die	Tattoos

Further reading

• “Tattoo” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• “Tattoo (Tätowierung)” in Duden online
• “Tattoo (Zapfenstreich)” in Duden online