Meerschweinchen
German
Etymology
From Meer (“sea”) + Schwein (“pig, swine”) + -chen (diminutive suffix), literally “little sea pig”, or from Meerschwein + -chen. The use of Meer refers to the animal as coming from overseas.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈmeːɐ̯ˌʃvaɪ̯nçn̩/, /ˈmeːɐ̯ˌʃvaɪ̯nçən/
Audio (file) - Hyphenation: Meer‧schwein‧chen
Declension
Declension of Meerschweinchen [neuter, strong]
| singular | plural | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| indef. | def. | noun | def. | noun | |
| nominative | ein | das | Meerschweinchen | die | Meerschweinchen |
| genitive | eines | des | Meerschweinchens | der | Meerschweinchen |
| dative | einem | dem | Meerschweinchen | den | Meerschweinchen |
| accusative | ein | das | Meerschweinchen | die | Meerschweinchen |
Derived terms
- Nacktmeerschweinchen (“skinny pig”)
Related terms
- (usually diminutive) Meerschwein (“guinea pig”)
Further reading
- “Meerschweinchen” in Duden online
- “Meerschweinchen” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
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