See also: Ass, ASS, -ass, Äss, áss, äss , and ašs

English

ass English Wikipedia has an article on: Wikipedia

Pronunciation

enPR: ăs , IPA (key) : /æs/

, IPA : Audio (UK)

Audio (US)

Rhymes: -æs

Etymology 1

From Middle English as, ass, asse, from Old English assa, back-formed from assen (“she-ass”), from Celtic (compare Old Irish asan, Old Cornish asen), from Latin asinus. Replaced Old English esol, from Proto-West Germanic *asil, also a loanword from the same Latin word.

Noun

ass (plural asses)

ass Somali wild

Any of several species of horse-like animals, especially Equus asinus, the domesticated of which are used as beasts of burden. donkey 1650, [ i.e., the Blacknesse of Negroes ] ”, in Pseudodoxia Epidemica: [ … ] , 2nd edition, London: Printed by A. Miller, for Edw[ard] Dod and Nath[aniel] Ekins, [ … ] , OCLC 152706203 , 6th book, Thomas Browne , “Of the Same, the Blacknesse of Negroes”, in, 2nd edition, London: Printed by A. Miller, for Edw[ard] Dod and Nath[aniel] Ekins,, 6th book, page 282 Thus the Aſſe having a peculiar mark of a croſſe made by a black liſt down his back, and another athwart, or at right angles down his ſhoulders; common opinion aſcribes this figure unto a peculiar ſignation; ſince that beaſt had the honour to bear our Saviour on his back. ( slang ) A stupid person. That new kid left the cap off the syrup bottle again! What an ass. fool idiot

Hyponyms

( beast of burden ) : donkey onager wild ass

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

— See also translations at donkey animal Albanian: please add this translation if you can

Arabic: حِمَار (ar) ( ḥimār )

Aramaic: Classical Syriac: ܚܡܪܐ c ( ḥəmārā ) , ܚܡܪܬܐ f ( ḥəmārtā ) , ܐܬܢܐ f ( ʾăṯānā ) Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: חֲמָרָא m ( ḥămārā )

Armenian: էշ (hy) ( ēš ) , ավանակ (hy) ( avanak )

, Azerbaijani: eşşək (az)

Baluchi: ہر ( har )

Basque: asto (eu)

Chinese: Mandarin: 驢 (zh) 驴 (zh) ( lǘ ) , 驢子 (zh) 驴子 (zh) ( lǘzi )

Chuvash: ашак ( ašak )

Czech: osel (cs) m

Danish: æsel (da) n

Dutch: ezel (nl) m

Egyptian:

( ꜥꜣ m )

( ) Esperanto: azeno (eo)

Estonian: eesel

Finnish: aasi (fi)

French: âne (fr) m

German: Esel (de) m , Eselin f

, Greek: όνος (el) m ( ónos ) , γάϊδαρος m ( gáïdaros ) Ancient: ὄνος m or f ( ónos )

, Hungarian: szamár (hu)

Icelandic: asni (is) m

Ido: asno (io)

Indonesian: keledai (id)

Interlingua: asino

Irish: asal (ga) m

Italian: asino (it) m , ciuco m , somaro (it) m , buricco m

, , , Karachay-Balkar: эшек

Kazakh: есек (kk) ( esek ) Korean: 나귀 (ko) ( nagwi ) , 당나귀 (ko) ( dangnagwi )

, Kyrgyz: эшек (ky) ( eşek )

Latin: asellus m , asella f

, Latvian: ēzelis m

Laz: ეშეღი ( ešeɣi )

Limburgish: aezel (li)

Macedonian: ма́гаре n ( mágare )

Malay: keldai

Manx: assyl m

Norwegian: esel (no) n , asen (no) n

, Occitan: ase (oc) m , asne (oc) m

, Old French: asne m

Persian: خر (fa) ( xar )

Polish: osioł (pl) m anim

Portuguese: asno (pt) m , burro (pt) m , jumento (pt) m , besta (pt) f , jerico (pt) m , jegue (pt) m

, , , , , Romanian: măgar (ro) m , asin (ro) m

, Russian: осёл (ru) m ( osjól ) , иша́к (ru) m ( išák )

, Samoan: asini

Sanskrit: गर्दभ (sa) m ( gardabha )

Scottish Gaelic: asal m , aiseal m

, Serbo-Croatian: Cyrillic: ма̀гарац m Roman: màgarac (sh) m

Sicilian: sceccu (scn) m

Slovak: somár m , osol (sk) m

, Slovene: osel (sl) m

Spanish: asno (es) m , pollino (es) ( esp. a young ass ) , burro (es) m , jumento (es) m

, , , Sudovian: asilas m

Swedish: åsna (sv) c

Tagalog: asno (tl)

Tocharian B: kercapo

Turkish: eşek (tr)

Vietnamese: lừa (vi)

Volapük: cuk (vo)

See also

Etymology 2

Variant of arse; used chiefly in North America. Ultimately from Middle English ars, ers, from Old English ærs, ears, from Proto-Germanic *arsaz (compare Old High German ars (German Arsch), Old Norse ars, Old Frisian ers), from Proto-Indo-European *h₃érsos (compare Ancient Greek ὄρρος (órrhos)).

Contrary to the widespread belief of this being a euphemism, it arose as a pronunciation spelling (of the older form arse still used in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, etc.) that shows the loss of -r- before s increasingly common in all words since the 18th century in both England and its colonies. In the USA, "dropping Rs" (non-rhotic pronunciation) was common in prestige speech until the 1860s, when the American Civil War shifted the country's centers of wealth and political power to areas with fewer cultural connections to the British elite. (See also these similar cases, some of which retained both spellings with different meanings: cuss from curse, gash from garsh, bass (“fish”) from barse, bust from burst, passel from parcel.)

Noun

ass (countable and uncountable, plural asses)

Usage notes

When used with a possessive, it adds a tone of anger or disapproval to the whole sentence: "he has trouble getting his ass up in the morning" is much stronger and more negative than "he has trouble getting up in the morning". Such usage is also considered by many to be rude, vulgar and offensive, especially when it refers to the person addressed.

Derived terms

Terms derived from ass (buttocks, vulgar)

Translations

vulgar slang:sex Estonian: perse (et)

Finnish: perse (fi)

French: cul (fr) m , fesse (fr) f

, German: Fick (de) m

Greek: πρωκτός (el) m ( proktós )

Hebrew: מִין (he) m ( min )

Indonesian: ngentot

Italian: culo (it) f Persian: کس (fa) ( kos )

Polish: dupa (pl) f , dupczenie (pl) n , pierdolenie (pl) jebanie (pl)

, , Portuguese: xiri (pt) m , xibiu m , xoxota (pt) f , bunda (pt) f , foda (pt) f

, , , , Romanian: futai n

Russian: е́бля (ru) f ( jéblja ) , тра́ханье (ru) n ( tráxanʹje ) , трах (ru) m ( trax )

, , Spanish: polvo (es) m

Swedish: röv (sv) c

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked Interlingua: (please verify) vagina (ia)

Further reading

L. Sprague de Camp (1971) , “Arse and ass”, in Journal of the International Phonetic Association , volume 1, issue 2, DOI: 10.1017/S0025100300000281 , pages 79–80

Anagrams

German

Verb

ass

aß Switzerland and Liechtenstein standard spelling of

Latvian

Vagona ass

Ass

Etymology 1

From Proto-Balto-Slavic *aśís, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱs-. Originally an i/n-stem, it became an i-stem in Baltic.[1]

Pronunciation

Noun

ass f (6th declension)

axle ( rotates pin or spindle around which something, e.g. a wheel ) ratu ass ― axletree vagona ass ― wagon axle motocikla pakaļējā riteņa ass ― motorcycle rear wheel axle ( mathematics ) axis ( a line with certain important properties ) simetrijas, rotācijas ass ― axis of symmetry, of rotation zemes griešanās ass ― the Earth's rotation axis koordinātu asis ― coordinate axes abscisu, ordinātu ass ― x-, y-axis

Declension

Declension of ass (6th declension) singular (vienskaitlis) plural (daudzskaitlis) nominative (nominatīvs) ass asis accusative (akuzatīvs) asi asis genitive (ģenitīvs) ass asu dative (datīvs) asij asīm instrumental (instrumentālis) asi asīm locative (lokatīvs) asī asīs vocative (vokatīvs) ass asis

Etymology 2

From the same source as ass (“axle”), originally a unit of measurement corresponding to the length of a person's outstretched arms (compare Russian са́жень (sáženʹ, “old unit of measurement; length of outstretched arms”).[1]

Pronunciation

Noun

ass f (6th declension)

old unit of length in the Russian system, equivalent to approximately 2.13 meters jūras ass ― fathom (unit of length in the English system, approximately 1.83 meters) old unit of volume for measuring wood, equivalent to approximately 2-4 cubic meters divas asis malkas ― two axes (=4-8m3) of wood

Declension

Declension of ass (6th declension) singular (vienskaitlis) plural (daudzskaitlis) nominative (nominatīvs) ass asis accusative (akuzatīvs) asi asis genitive (ģenitīvs) ass asu dative (datīvs) asij asīm instrumental (instrumentālis) asi asīm locative (lokatīvs) asī asīs vocative (vokatīvs) ass asis

Etymology 3

From earlier *asus, from Proto-Baltic *ašus, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱ- (“sharp, pointed, edgy”). With an extra suffix *-ro, the same stem also yielded Proto-Balto-Slavic *aśras (“sharp”), whence Latvian dialectal asrs, as well as the Lithuanian cognate aštrùs, dialectal ašrùs. From this stem, there are also Latvian reflexes with ak rather than as (e.g., akmens (“stone”), akots (“awn”)), possibly a result of Proto-Indo-European dialectal variation. In Latvian, former u-stem adjectives like *asus were assimilated into other classes; *asus gave rise to both an o-stem and a yo-stem variant which later on became independent words, ass and ašs, with different semantic nuances (compare also, e.g., plats and plašs, or dobs and dobjš). Other cognates include Old Church Slavonic остръ (ostrŭ), Russian о́стрый (óstryj), Belarusian во́стры (vóstry), Ukrainian о́стрий (óstryj), го́стрий (hóstryj), Bulgarian о́стър (óstǎr), Czech ostrý, Polish ostry, Proto-Germanic *agjō (Old High German ecka, egga (“corner, edge, point, peak, blade”), German Ecke, Sanskrit अश्रिः (áśriḥ, “corner, edge, blade”), Ancient Greek ἀκή (akḗ, “point, tip”), ἄκρος (ákros, “sharp, pointed”), Latin ācer (“sharp”), aciēs (“sharpness, blade”).[1]

Pronunciation

Adjective

ass (definite asais, comparative asāks, superlative visasākais, adverb asi)

sharp ( such that it ( blade tool ) can easily cut or pierce ) ass nazis, zāģis, cirvis ― sharp knife, saw, ax ass īlens, ilknis ― sharp awl, fang asa adata ― sharp needle asi ragi, ilkņi ― sharp horns, fangs pointed ( tip having a narrow ) asas kalnu galotnes ― sharp mountain tops ass zīmulis ― sharp pencil angular, not rounded ( drawing of body parts ; also of writing ) asi elkoņi ― sharp elbows asi vaigu kauli ― sharp cheekbones asas burtu formas rokrakstā ― sharp letter forms in handwriting ( of plants ) sharp ( having little thorns or thorn -like growths , or having a sharp edge , capable of stinging ) ass dadzis, paeglis, grīslis ― sharp thistle, juniper, sedge asa zāle, nātre ― sharp leaf, nettle ( of fabric skin , etc. ) coarse, rough asa sejas āda ― coarse, rough facial skin ass linu dvielis ― towel (made) of coarse linen sharp, pungent, hot ( which irritates the senses, creating a strong feeling or reaction ) asa mērce ― spicy, hot (lit. sharp) sauce asa dūmu smaka ― pungent smell of smoke ass ož pēc hlora ― sharp smell of chlorine ass vējš ― sharp wind asas sāpes ― sharp pain ass klepus ― sharp (painful) cough harsh ( voice, sound ) ; sharp, biting, unsparing, fierce asā balss ― harsh voice runāt asā tonī ― to speak in a harsh tone (of voice) ass sarkasms ― sharp, biting sarcasm ass pārmetumi ― sharp, harsh criticism asa ķilda ― fierce quarrel asa mēle ― sharp tongue (= caustic, sarcastic) sharp, well-defined, clearly marked asas kontūras ― sharp contour, profile asi sejas vaibsti ― sharp facial features zīmēt asām līnijām ― to draw with sharp, well-defined lines ( about problems, questions ) clear, acute, of immediate importance asa problēma ― a clear, acute problem sharp ( very well developed , very accurate ) asa redze ― sharp vision ass prāts ― sharp mind asa uztvere ― sharp perception, acumen

Declension

(nenoteiktā galotne) of ass indefinite declensionof masculine (vīriešu dzimte) feminine (sieviešu dzimte) singular

(vienskaitlis) plural

(daudzskaitlis) singular

(vienskaitlis) plural

(daudzskaitlis) nominative (nominatīvs) ass asi asa asas accusative (akuzatīvs) asu asus asu asas genitive (ģenitīvs) asa asu asas asu dative (datīvs) asam asiem asai asām instrumental (instrumentālis) asu asiem asu asām locative (lokatīvs) asā asos asā asās vocative (vokatīvs) — — — —

Synonyms

( of "sharp" ) : skaudrs

( of "coarse", "harsh" ) : raupjš rupjš negluds skarbs

Antonyms

( of "sharp" ) : truls neass

( of "coarse", "harsh" ) : gluds maigs mīksts

Derived terms

References

Luxembourgish

Verb

ass

is ( third-person singular present of sinn )

Manx

Etymology

From Old Irish ass, masculine and neuter singular form of a (“out of, from”), from Proto-Celtic *exs, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁eǵʰs (“from”). Compare Irish as.

Adverb

ass

Preposition

ass

out of

Inflection

Singular Plural Person 1st 2nd 3rd m. 3rd f. 1st 2nd 3rd Normal assym assyd ass assjee assdooin assdiu assdaue Emphatic assyms assyds assyn assjeeish assdooinyn assdiuish assdauesyn

Derived terms

Pronoun

ass

Derived terms

assyn ( emphatic )

Middle English

Noun

ass

asshe ( “ burnt matter ” ) Alternative form of

Old Irish

Alternative forms

Pronunciation

Pronoun

ass

Swedish

Noun

ass n

( music ) A-flat an insured letter; assurerat Abbreviation of brev)

Declension

Declension of ass Singular Plural Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite Nominative ass asset ass assen Genitive ass assets ass assens

See also