Sankt-Nimmerleins-Tag

German

Etymology

From Sankt Nimmerlein (“fictional saint”) +‎ -s- +‎ Tag (“day”). The first part is Sankt +‎ nimmer +‎ -lein, so a saint whose name day never comes. Compare Dutch sint-juttemis and French à la Saint-Glinglin.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /zaŋktˈnɪmərlaɪ̯nsˌtaːk/
  • Hyphenation: Sankt‧Nim‧mer‧leins‧Tag

Noun

Sankt-Nimmerleins-Tag m (genitive Sankt-Nimmerleins-Tages or Sankt-Nimmerleins-Tags, plural Sankt-Nimmerleins-Tage)

  1. first of never, cold day in Hell; (+ zum/am/auf) when pigs fly, when Hell freezes over; (+ bis) until the cows come home, until doomsday
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