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Bein. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
Bein, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
Bein in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
Bein you have here. The definition of the word
Bein will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
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German
Etymology
From Middle High German bein, from Old High German bein, from Proto-West Germanic *bain, from Proto-Germanic *bainą. Compare Dutch been, English bone, Danish ben.
Pronunciation
Noun
Bein n (strong, genitive Beines or Beins, plural Beine, diminutive Beinchen n)
- leg of a person, animal, or object
- (technical, archaic, except in compounds) bone
- Synonym: Knochen
Usage notes
- In a narrower sense, German Bein excludes the feet, but for the most part it includes them. It can even refer to the feet specifically in some regions where a clothed but barefoot person might hear Du hast ja nichts an den Beinen! (literally “You have nothing on your legs!”) Compare also the phrase wieder auf den Beinen, where English says “back on one’s feet”.
- The sense of bone is widely obsolete in standard usage, apart from technical usage ("aus Bein geschnitzt"), some common phrases, such as "durch Mark und Bein", and various compounds, such as Schlüsselbein, Elfenbein, Steißbein.
Declension
Derived terms
Further reading
German Low German
Pronunciation
Noun
Bein m (plural Beiner)
- Alternative form of Been (“leg”)
Noun
Bein n (plural has not been set)
- Alternative form of Been (“bone”)