Fräulein
See also: fraulein and Fraulein
German
Etymology
Middle High German vrouwelīn (“mistress, young unmarried noblewoman”), equivalent to Frau + -lein
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈfʁɔʏ̯laɪ̯n/ (standard)
- IPA(key): /ˈfʁɔlaɪ̯n/ (colloquially, especially northern and central Germany)
Audio (file) - Rhymes: -aɪ̯n
Noun
Fräulein n (genitive Fräuleins, plural Fräulein or Fräuleins)
- Diminutive of Frau (but not freely applicable)
- (dated, address for an unmarried woman) miss
- Guten Morgen, Fräulein Schmitz!
- Good morning, Miss Schmitz!
- Guten Morgen, Fräulein Schmitz!
- miss, young woman (especially a shop assistant)
- Würden Sie mir kurz helfen, junges Fräulein!
- Would you help me please, miss!
- Würden Sie mir kurz helfen, junges Fräulein!
- young lady, missy (said jokingly or rebukingly to a little girl)
- So, jetzt reicht's aber, Fräulein!
- All right, that's enough, young lady!
- So, jetzt reicht's aber, Fräulein!
Usage notes
- Fräulein as a formal address for an unmarried woman is now uncommon and considered disrespectful and sexist by some. Frau is the normal address for all women.
- As an informal address for a girl or young woman whose name one does not know, particularly a shop assistant, the word is still fairly common, though chiefly restricted to older speakers. It is advisable to avoid it in order to be on the safe side.
Declension
Declension of Fräulein
singular | plural | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
indef. | def. | noun | def. | noun | |
nominative | ein | das | Fräulein | die | Fräulein |
genitive | eines | des | Fräuleins | der | Fräulein |
dative | einem | dem | Fräulein | den | Fräulein |
accusative | ein | das | Fräulein | die | Fräulein |
Descendants
- English: fraulein, Fraulein
- Esperanto: fraŭlino
Further reading
- Fräulein in Duden online