nielle
See also: niellé
English
Etymology
Borrowed from French nielle. Doublet of nigella.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /njɛl/
Adjective
nielle (comparative more nielle, superlative most nielle)
- Extremely dark black.
- 1999, L.E. Modesitt, Jr., Gravity Dreams, p. 5
- That sky was not purple, nor blue, but nielle, blackness beyond black, with stars that jabbed like knives of light.
- 1999, L.E. Modesitt, Jr., Gravity Dreams, p. 5
Anagrams
- Nellie
French
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /njɛl/
- Homophone: Niel
Etymology 1
From Late Latin nigella, substantivization of the feminine of Latin nigellus (“blackish”).
Noun
nielle f (plural nielles)
- corncockle
- blight, ear cockle
Derived terms
- nieller
- niellure
Etymology 2
Often considered a borrowing from Italian niello (from Latin nigellus), but may also reflect a deverbal of nieller, inherited from the same Latin source, perhaps nevertheless influenced in its spelling by Italian.[1]
Noun
nielle m (plural nielles)
- niello
Derived terms
- nieller
- nielleur
Verb
nielle
- inflection of nieller:
- first/third-person singular present indicative/subjunctive
- second-person singular imperative
References
- Walther von Wartburg (1928–2002), “nĭgĕllus”, in Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch (in German), volume 7: N–Pas, page 129
Further reading
- “nielle”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.