Ente

See also: ente, enté, énte, and -ente

German

Etymology

From Middle High German ente, confluence of (1.) the plural and oblique singular of ant and (2.) the Old High German variant enita, both from older anut, from Proto-West Germanic *anad. Cognate with Dutch eend.

The sense “canard” (mid-19th c.) is a calque of French canard, but also ties in with the expression blaue Enten (“lies, humbug”, literally “blue ducks”, since 15th c.).

The sense “Citroën 2CV” is shared with Dutch eend. This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛntə/

• Audio (Germany (Berlin)):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛntə
• Hyphenation: En‧te

Noun

Ente f (genitive Ente, plural Enten, diminutive Entchen n or Entlein n)

1. duck (aquatic bird of the family Anatidae)
2. (especially) mallard; the most common duck species in the area, thought of as the typical duck
3. (informal) Citroën 2CV (an economy car produced by the French company Citroën)
4. (medicine) bedpan (bedpan for holding urine)
5. (journalism) canard (false or misleading report)

   Synonyms: Falschmeldung, Zeitungsente

   einer Ente aufsitzen ― (please add an English translation of this usage example)

   • 2022 December 22, Thomas Abeltshauser, “Balzac-Verfilmung „Verlorene Illusionen“: Als Fake News noch Enten waren”, in Die Tageszeitung: taz‎, →ISSN:

     Fake News etwa, die hier noch klassisch „Enten“ heißen, auch dafür gibt es eine Erklärung.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Declension

Declension of Ente [feminine]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	eine	die	Ente	die	Enten
genitive	einer	der	Ente	der	Enten
dative	einer	der	Ente	den	Enten
accusative	eine	die	Ente	die	Enten

Derived terms

• Eiderente
• Entenbraten
• Entenbrust
• Entenhausen
• Entenkeule
• Entenküken
• Entenleber
• Ententanz
• Ententeich
• Enterich
• Entlein
• Gummiente
• Holzente
• Krickente
• Plastikente
• Quietscheente
• Schnatterente
• Stockente
• Tigerente
• Wasserente
• Wildente

See also

• Erpel

Further reading

• “Ente” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• “Ente” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon
• “Ente” in Duden online
• Ente on the German Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^de

Hunsrik

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛntə/
• Rhymes: -ɛntə
• Syllabification: Ente

Noun

Ente

1. plural of Ent