Geck
See also: geck
English
Etymology
Borrowed from German Geck.
Proper noun
Geck (plural Gecks)
- A surname from German.
Statistics
- According to the 2010 United States Census, Geck is the 35096th most common surname in the United States, belonging to 642 individuals. Geck is most common among White (83.49%) individuals.
Further reading
- Hanks, Patrick, editor (2003), “Geck”, in Dictionary of American Family Names, volume 2, New York City: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 25.
German
Etymology
Borrowed from Middle Low German geck (“fool”). The same word has later been borrowed again from Ripuarian as jeck (“crazy”) and Jeck (“fool; carnival reveler”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɡɛk/, [ɡɛkʰ]
Audio (file)
Noun
Geck m (weak or strong, genitive Gecken or (uncommon, nonstandard) Gecks, plural Gecken or (uncommon, nonstandard) Gecke, diminutive Geckchen n)
- (derogatory, somewhat dated) dandy, fop, poser (vain, narcissistic man)
- Synonyms: Laffe, Stutzer, Zierbengel, (chiefly Austria, fashionable in the 1880s) Gigerl, (colloquial) Lackaffe, (colloquial, regional) Fatzke, (youth slang) Poser
Usage notes
- The word can be declined according to the weak or the strong pattern. The weak declension is standard and is the only one mentioned in dictionaries.
Declension
Declension of Geck [masculine, weak // strong]
| singular | plural | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| indef. | def. | noun | def. | noun | |
| nominative | ein | der | Geck | die | Gecken, Gecke1 |
| genitive | eines | des | Gecken, Gecks1 | der | Gecken, Gecke1 |
| dative | einem | dem | Gecken, Geck1 | den | Gecken |
| accusative | einen | den | Gecken, Geck1 | die | Gecken, Gecke1 |
1Uncommon, nonstandard.
Derived terms
- Geckerei
Further reading
- “Geck” in Duden online
- “Geck” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
- “Geck” in Deutsches Wörterbuch von Jacob und Wilhelm Grimm, 16 vols., Leipzig 1854–1961.
Luxembourgish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɡæk/
Noun
Geck m (plural Gecken)
- (derogatory) madman, lunatic, maniac
- fool, crackpot