teuton
/ˈt(j)u.tən/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.49 in modern English
6
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A member of an early Germanic tribe living in Jutland noted in historical writings by Greek and Roman authors.
noun
A member of the Teutonic Order.
Example Sentences
- "The difference between the Clergy and the Teuton conquerors was more than a difference of creed, or of civilization. It was an actual difference of race. They were Romans, to whom the Teuton was a savage, speaking a different tongue, obeying different laws, his whole theory of the universe different from the Roman."
- "We have noted that the Teutonic layer of European barbarians, unlike the Celtic layer, resisted the disintegrating action of Hellenism to such effect that the Teutons were able to take their place in the external proletariat of the Hellenic World and to dispatch the Hellenic Society in its death agonies with the coup de grâce."
- "Some fifteen hundred years ago, the Teuton tribes of Northern Europe held an annual ceremony.[…]We can't presume to understand all that this specific ritual meant to the Teutons nor precisely what their expectations might have been."
- "What he imagined the social order and the experience of the Teutons actually to have been, and why this lost world should represent an ideal, is, it must be said, hard to discover. His pronouncements on the Teutons of the Dark Ages are decidedly sparse."
- "The third threat, from the Teutonic Knights of Germany, was the worst, because the Crusader Teutons wanted not only Russian land but also to kill off the people of Russia because they were a different kind of Christian from them!"
- "Its garrison consisted of the Templars and Hospitalliers, the knights of Cyprus, Teutons, French, English, Pizzan, Venetian, and Genoan mercenaries.[…]On the following day the New Tower of the city, which was defended by the Teuton knights, was taken by assault."
Etymology
PIE word *tewtéh₂ Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *tewtéh₂der. Latin Teutonēsbor. English Teuton Borrowed from Latin Teutonēs, Teutonī (“the Teutons”) (compare Ancient Greek Τεύτονες (Teútones)), possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *tewtéh₂ (“people”). First attested in the early 1700s.
Origin
- Source language: Proto-Indo-European
- First known use: First attested in the early 1700s
Word Breakdown
- Root: *tewtéh₂
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈt(j)u.tən/
- British English: /ˈt(j)uː.tən/