"Ferkel" meaning in German

See Ferkel in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

IPA: /ˈfɛrkəl/, [ˈfɛʁ.kl̩], [ˈfɛɐ̯-], [-kəl] Audio: De-Ferkel.ogg
Etymology: From Middle High German verkelen, byform of verhelīn, from Old High German farhilī, farhilīn, diminutive of farah (“pig”), from Proto-West Germanic *farh, from Proto-Germanic *farhaz (whence English farrow), from Proto-Indo-European *pórḱos. The -k- has been explained as an irregular fortition of -h-, which would be plausible if the form were of Upper German origin, where -h- was strong and where there was dialectal variation between /rx/ and /rk/. However, verkelen is first found in West Central German along the Rhine, where stem-internal -h- had been lost early on (Middle High German verlīn). It therefore seems at least equally probable that the -k- is due to influence by a related Rhenish word for “pig, piglet”, still found today in Ripuarian Ferke, which goes back to a Frankish *far(i)kīn (compare Old Dutch farkīn, ferkīn, whence modern Dutch varken), from Proto-Germanic *farhikīną, another diminutive of *farhaz. Etymology templates: {{root|de|ine-pro|*perḱ-|id=dig}}, {{inh|de|gmh|verkelen}} Middle High German verkelen, {{inh|de|goh|farhilī}} Old High German farhilī, {{inh|de|gmw-pro|*farh}} Proto-West Germanic *farh, {{der|de|gem-pro|*farhaz}} Proto-Germanic *farhaz, {{m+|en|farrow}} English farrow, {{inh|de|ine-pro|*pórḱos}} Proto-Indo-European *pórḱos, {{m+|gmh|verlīn}} Middle High German verlīn, {{der|de|frk||*far(i)kīn}} Frankish *far(i)kīn, {{cog|odt|farkīn}} Old Dutch farkīn, {{cog|nl|varken}} Dutch varken, {{m+|gem-pro|*farhikīną}} Proto-Germanic *farhikīną Head templates: {{de-noun|n|dim=chen,Ferklein}} Ferkel n (strong, genitive Ferkels, plural Ferkel, diminutive Ferkelchen n or Ferklein n) Inflection templates: {{de-ndecl|n}} Forms: Ferkels [genitive], Ferkel [plural], Ferkelchen [diminutive, neuter], Ferklein [diminutive, neuter], strong [table-tags], Ferkel [nominative, singular], Ferkel [definite, nominative, plural], Ferkels [genitive, singular], Ferkel [definite, genitive, plural], Ferkel [dative, singular], Ferkeln [dative, definite, plural], Ferkel [accusative, singular], Ferkel [accusative, definite, plural]
  1. piglet; a young/immature pig Tags: neuter, strong
    Sense id: en-Ferkel-de-noun-napUFbu6 Categories (other): Pages with 1 entry, Baby animals, Pigs Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 50 50 Disambiguation of Baby animals: 56 44 Disambiguation of Pigs: 89 11
  2. (derogatory) a dirty or contemptible person Tags: derogatory, neuter, strong Synonyms: Stinktier, Sau
    Sense id: en-Ferkel-de-noun-g8qJM2RS Categories (other): German entries with incorrect language header, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries Disambiguation of German entries with incorrect language header: 24 76 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 50 50 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 39 61
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Derived forms: Hirschferkel

Inflected forms

{
  "derived": [
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0",
      "word": "Hirschferkel"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*perḱ-",
        "id": "dig"
      },
      "expansion": "",
      "name": "root"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "gmh",
        "3": "verkelen"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle High German verkelen",
      "name": "inh"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "goh",
        "3": "farhilī"
      },
      "expansion": "Old High German farhilī",
      "name": "inh"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*farh"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *farh",
      "name": "inh"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*farhaz"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *farhaz",
      "name": "der"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "farrow"
      },
      "expansion": "English farrow",
      "name": "m+"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*pórḱos"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *pórḱos",
      "name": "inh"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "gmh",
        "2": "verlīn"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle High German verlīn",
      "name": "m+"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "frk",
        "3": "",
        "4": "*far(i)kīn"
      },
      "expansion": "Frankish *far(i)kīn",
      "name": "der"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "odt",
        "2": "farkīn"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Dutch farkīn",
      "name": "cog"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "nl",
        "2": "varken"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch varken",
      "name": "cog"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "gem-pro",
        "2": "*farhikīną"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *farhikīną",
      "name": "m+"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "From Middle High German verkelen, byform of verhelīn, from Old High German farhilī, farhilīn, diminutive of farah (“pig”), from Proto-West Germanic *farh, from Proto-Germanic *farhaz (whence English farrow), from Proto-Indo-European *pórḱos.\nThe -k- has been explained as an irregular fortition of -h-, which would be plausible if the form were of Upper German origin, where -h- was strong and where there was dialectal variation between /rx/ and /rk/. However, verkelen is first found in West Central German along the Rhine, where stem-internal -h- had been lost early on (Middle High German verlīn). It therefore seems at least equally probable that the -k- is due to influence by a related Rhenish word for “pig, piglet”, still found today in Ripuarian Ferke, which goes back to a Frankish *far(i)kīn (compare Old Dutch farkīn, ferkīn, whence modern Dutch varken), from Proto-Germanic *farhikīną, another diminutive of *farhaz.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "Ferkels",
      "tags": [
        "genitive"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkel",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkelchen",
      "tags": [
        "diminutive",
        "neuter"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferklein",
      "tags": [
        "diminutive",
        "neuter"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "strong",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "table-tags"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "de-ndecl",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "inflection-template"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkel",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "nominative",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkel",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "definite",
        "nominative",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkels",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "genitive",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkel",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "definite",
        "genitive",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkel",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "dative",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkeln",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "dative",
        "definite",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkel",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "accusative",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkel",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "accusative",
        "definite",
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "n",
        "dim": "chen,Ferklein"
      },
      "expansion": "Ferkel n (strong, genitive Ferkels, plural Ferkel, diminutive Ferkelchen n or Ferklein n)",
      "name": "de-noun"
    }
  ],
  "inflection_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "n"
      },
      "name": "de-ndecl"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "German",
  "lang_code": "de",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "50 50",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "56 44",
          "kind": "other",
          "langcode": "de",
          "name": "Baby animals",
          "orig": "de:Baby animals",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "89 11",
          "kind": "other",
          "langcode": "de",
          "name": "Pigs",
          "orig": "de:Pigs",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "piglet; a young/immature pig"
      ],
      "id": "en-Ferkel-de-noun-napUFbu6",
      "links": [
        [
          "piglet",
          "piglet"
        ],
        [
          "pig",
          "pig"
        ]
      ],
      "tags": [
        "neuter",
        "strong"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "24 76",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "German entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "50 50",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "39 61",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "a dirty or contemptible person"
      ],
      "id": "en-Ferkel-de-noun-g8qJM2RS",
      "links": [
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ],
        [
          "dirty",
          "dirty"
        ],
        [
          "contemptible",
          "contemptible"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(derogatory) a dirty or contemptible person"
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "Stinktier"
        },
        {
          "word": "Sau"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "derogatory",
        "neuter",
        "strong"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈfɛrkəl/"
    },
    {
      "ipa": "[ˈfɛʁ.kl̩]"
    },
    {
      "ipa": "[ˈfɛɐ̯-]"
    },
    {
      "ipa": "[-kəl]"
    },
    {
      "audio": "De-Ferkel.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/0/0b/De-Ferkel.ogg/De-Ferkel.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0b/De-Ferkel.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "word": "Ferkel"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "German entries with incorrect language header",
    "German lemmas",
    "German neuter nouns",
    "German nouns",
    "German terms derived from Frankish",
    "German terms derived from Middle High German",
    "German terms derived from Old High German",
    "German terms derived from Proto-Germanic",
    "German terms derived from Proto-Indo-European",
    "German terms derived from Proto-West Germanic",
    "German terms derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *perḱ- (dig)",
    "German terms inherited from Middle High German",
    "German terms inherited from Old High German",
    "German terms inherited from Proto-Indo-European",
    "German terms inherited from Proto-West Germanic",
    "Pages with 1 entry",
    "Pages with entries",
    "de:Baby animals",
    "de:Pigs"
  ],
  "derived": [
    {
      "word": "Hirschferkel"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*perḱ-",
        "id": "dig"
      },
      "expansion": "",
      "name": "root"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "gmh",
        "3": "verkelen"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle High German verkelen",
      "name": "inh"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "goh",
        "3": "farhilī"
      },
      "expansion": "Old High German farhilī",
      "name": "inh"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*farh"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *farh",
      "name": "inh"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*farhaz"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *farhaz",
      "name": "der"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "farrow"
      },
      "expansion": "English farrow",
      "name": "m+"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*pórḱos"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *pórḱos",
      "name": "inh"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "gmh",
        "2": "verlīn"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle High German verlīn",
      "name": "m+"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "frk",
        "3": "",
        "4": "*far(i)kīn"
      },
      "expansion": "Frankish *far(i)kīn",
      "name": "der"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "odt",
        "2": "farkīn"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Dutch farkīn",
      "name": "cog"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "nl",
        "2": "varken"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch varken",
      "name": "cog"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "gem-pro",
        "2": "*farhikīną"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *farhikīną",
      "name": "m+"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "From Middle High German verkelen, byform of verhelīn, from Old High German farhilī, farhilīn, diminutive of farah (“pig”), from Proto-West Germanic *farh, from Proto-Germanic *farhaz (whence English farrow), from Proto-Indo-European *pórḱos.\nThe -k- has been explained as an irregular fortition of -h-, which would be plausible if the form were of Upper German origin, where -h- was strong and where there was dialectal variation between /rx/ and /rk/. However, verkelen is first found in West Central German along the Rhine, where stem-internal -h- had been lost early on (Middle High German verlīn). It therefore seems at least equally probable that the -k- is due to influence by a related Rhenish word for “pig, piglet”, still found today in Ripuarian Ferke, which goes back to a Frankish *far(i)kīn (compare Old Dutch farkīn, ferkīn, whence modern Dutch varken), from Proto-Germanic *farhikīną, another diminutive of *farhaz.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "Ferkels",
      "tags": [
        "genitive"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkel",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkelchen",
      "tags": [
        "diminutive",
        "neuter"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferklein",
      "tags": [
        "diminutive",
        "neuter"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "strong",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "table-tags"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "de-ndecl",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "inflection-template"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkel",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "nominative",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkel",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "definite",
        "nominative",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkels",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "genitive",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkel",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "definite",
        "genitive",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkel",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "dative",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkeln",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "dative",
        "definite",
        "plural"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkel",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "accusative",
        "singular"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "Ferkel",
      "source": "declension",
      "tags": [
        "accusative",
        "definite",
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "n",
        "dim": "chen,Ferklein"
      },
      "expansion": "Ferkel n (strong, genitive Ferkels, plural Ferkel, diminutive Ferkelchen n or Ferklein n)",
      "name": "de-noun"
    }
  ],
  "inflection_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "n"
      },
      "name": "de-ndecl"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "German",
  "lang_code": "de",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "glosses": [
        "piglet; a young/immature pig"
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "piglet",
          "piglet"
        ],
        [
          "pig",
          "pig"
        ]
      ],
      "tags": [
        "neuter",
        "strong"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "German derogatory terms"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "a dirty or contemptible person"
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ],
        [
          "dirty",
          "dirty"
        ],
        [
          "contemptible",
          "contemptible"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(derogatory) a dirty or contemptible person"
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "Stinktier"
        },
        {
          "word": "Sau"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "derogatory",
        "neuter",
        "strong"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈfɛrkəl/"
    },
    {
      "ipa": "[ˈfɛʁ.kl̩]"
    },
    {
      "ipa": "[ˈfɛɐ̯-]"
    },
    {
      "ipa": "[-kəl]"
    },
    {
      "audio": "De-Ferkel.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/0/0b/De-Ferkel.ogg/De-Ferkel.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0b/De-Ferkel.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "word": "Ferkel"
}

Download raw JSONL data for Ferkel meaning in German (5.1kB)


This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable German dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2025-12-23 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2025-12-02 using wiktextract (6fdc867 and 9905b1f). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.