roofgier

Dutch

Etymology

Compound of roof (theft, robbery) or roven (to rob) + gier (vulture, desire).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈroːf.xiːr/
  • Hyphenation: roof‧gier

Noun

roofgier m (plural roofgieren)

  1. rapaciousness
  2. (figurative, literary) vulture
    • 1815, Hendrik Tollens, ’s Konings komst tot den troon.:
      Helaas, gelijk door barre streken / Een kudde zonder herder graast, / En afdoolt, uit elkaar geweken, / Waar wolf en roofgier huilt en aast:
      Alas, like through barren regions / A flock grazes without a shepherd, / And wanders off, dispersed, / Where wolf and vulture howl and prey
  3. rapacious person
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