gubbe
Norwegian Bokmål
Etymology
Unknown, but some believe it to be a shortening of the word godbonde ("good-farmer"), also thought to be borrowed directly from Swedish gubbe. Probably akin to the Nynorsk verb guve ("to stand crouching") which is from Old Norse gaupn ("something bent").
Noun
gubbe m (definite singular gubben, indefinite plural gubber, definite plural gubbene)
- An old man, geezer, husband, man of the house (lovingly or derogatory)
- En hvithåret gubbe gikk forbi.
- A white-haired old man walked by.
- Jeg skal spørre gubben
- I'll ask the man of the house.
- Hva er det den gamle gubben vil nå, da?
- What does the old geezer want now?
- En hvithåret gubbe gikk forbi.
- A stick of dynamite
- Noen kasta gubber mot butikken min!
- Someone threw dynamite sticks at my store!
- Noen kasta gubber mot butikken min!
References
- “gubbe” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
Norwegian Nynorsk
Etymology
As for Bokmål above.
Noun
gubbe m (definite singular gubben, indefinite plural gubbar, definite plural gubbane)
- An old man, geezer, husband, man of the house (lovingly or derogatory)
- Ein kvithåra gubbe gjekk forbi.
- A white-haired old man walked by.
- Eg skal spørja gubben
- I'll ask the man of the house.
- Kva er det den gamle gubben vil no, då?
- What does the old geezer want now?
- Ein kvithåra gubbe gjekk forbi.
- A stick of dynamite
- Nokon kasta gubbar mot butikken min!
- Someone threw dynamite sticks at my store!
- Nokon kasta gubbar mot butikken min!
References
- “gubbe” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
Swedish
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈɡɵbːˌɛ/
Noun
gubbe c
- (informal, sometimes derogatory) an older or elderly man
- Gå rakt fram, mot gubbarna där borta.
- Go straight ahead, towards those old men over there.
- (informal) one's husband
- Jag gick till teatern med min gubbe.
- I went to the theatre with my husband.
- (dialectal) a small lump
- (colloquial) a cheeky attempt
- Nej du! Den gubben går inte!
- Nope! Not falling for that one!
- (slang) one gram (of an illegal drug)
Usage notes
Sometimes used ironically to refer to friends, regardless of age, especially in the plural (similar to old chap in English). Also common for young boys, sometimes as "lilla gubben."
Declension
| Declension of gubbe | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | Plural | |||
| Indefinite | Definite | Indefinite | Definite | |
| Nominative | gubbe | gubben | gubbar | gubbarna |
| Genitive | gubbes | gubbens | gubbars | gubbarnas |
Derived terms
- dynamitgubbe (“stick of dynamite”)
- flyttgubbe (“mover”)
- fullgubbe
- gubben i månen (“the man in the moon”)
- gubbröra
- gubbsjuk
- gubbstrutt
- gubbtjyv
- halmgubbe (“straw man”)
- jordgubbe (“strawberry”)
- sjutton gubbar
- snuskgubbe
- snögubbe (“snowman”)
- sömngubbe (“sleep (in the corner of the eye)”)
- tomtegubbe
Descendants
- → Finnish: gube
This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.