steinn

Icelandic

Etymology

From Old Norse steinn ‎(“stone”), from Proto-Norse ᛊᛏᚨᛁᚾᚨᛉ ‎(stainaz), from Proto-Germanic *stainaz ‎(“stone”). Cognate with English stone, German Stein, Dutch steen, Danish sten, Norwegian Bokmål sten, Norwegian Nynorsk stein, Swedish sten, Faroese steinur, West Frisian stien, Low German Steen. Ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *stāi- ‎(“something hard”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /steitn/

  Rhymes: -eitn

Noun

steinn m (genitive singular steins, nominative plural steinar)

1. stone, rock
2. stone, pit, pip (the seed of certain fruit)
3. (medicine) a calculus, a stone

Declension

declension of steinn

m-s1	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	steinn	steinninn	steinar	steinarnir
accusative	stein	steininn	steina	steinana
dative	steini	steininum	steinum	steinunum
genitive	steins	steinsins	steina	steinanna

Derived terms

Terms derived from steinn ‎(“stone”)

augasteinn ‎(“eyeball”) brennisteinn ‎(“brimstone, sulfur”) eðalsteinn ‎(“gemstone, jewel”) gimsteinn ‎(“gemstone, jewel”) hrapsteinn ‎(“shooting star”) loftsteinn ‎(“meteorite”)

segulsteinn ‎(“lodestone”) steingeit ‎(“ibex, Capricorn”) þungsteinn ‎(“tungsten”) á milli steins og sleggju ‎(“between the anvil and the sledge-hammer”) setjast í helgan stein ‎(“to retire”) þegja eins og steinn ‎(“silent as the grave”)

Terms derived from steinn ‎(“calculus”)

blóðsteinn ‎(“blood calculus”) blöðrusteinn ‎(“vesical calculus, cystolith”) brissteinn ‎(“pancreatic calculus, pancreolith”) eyrnasteinn ‎(“aural calculus”) gallsteinn ‎(“biliary calculus”) garnasteinn ‎(“intestinal calculus, enterolith, alvinolith”) hvekksteinn ‎(“prostatic calculus, prostatolith”) kóralsteinn ‎(“coral calculus, dendrite calculus, staghorn calculus”) lifrarsteinn ‎(“hepatic calculus”)

munnvatnssteinn ‎(“salivary calculus, ptyalith, ptyalolith, sialolith”) nefholssteinn ‎(“nasal calculus, rhinolite”) nýrasteinn ‎(“renal calculus, kidney stone, nephrolith”) tannsteinn ‎(“dental calculus, odontolith, tartar”) trefjasteinn ‎(“fibrinous calculus”) þvagfærasteinn ‎(“urinary calculus”) þvagrásarsteinn ‎(“urethral calculus, calculus urethralis”) þvagsteinn ‎(“urinary calculus”)

Anagrams

• tennis

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Old Norse

Pronunciation

• (12th century Icelandic) IPA^(key): /ˈstɛinː/

Etymology

From Proto-Norse ᛊᛏᚨᛁᚾᚨᛉ ‎(stainaz), from Proto-Germanic *stainaz ‎(“stone”). Cognate with Old English stān, Old Frisian stēn, Old Saxon stēn, Old High German stein, Gothic 𐍃𐍄𐌰𐌹𐌽𐍃 ‎(stains).
Ultimately from Pre-Germanic *stoyh₂nos, o-grade of Proto-Indo-European *steyh₂- ‎(“to stiffen”).

Noun

steinn m (genitive steins, plural steinar)

1. a stone, boulder, rock
   • Barlaams Saga 169, in 1851, R. Keyser, C. R. Unger, Barlaams ok Josaphats saga. Christiania, page 167:

     […] meistara a stein gullsmiða eða tresmiða eða annarra hagleiksmanna. […]‎

     […] master of stone or goldsmith or carpenter or any other crasftsman, […]

2. a precious stone
   • Óláfs saga helga 46, in 1829, Þ. Guðmundsson, C. C. Rafn, Þ. Helgason, Fornmanna sögur, Volume IV. Copenhagen, page 75:

     […] ok bitullinn var settr dýrum steinum.‎

     […] and the bridle was inlaid with costly precious stones.

3. (medicine) a calculus, gravel
   • Hrafns saga 4, in 1858, J. Sigurðsson, G. Vigfússon, Biskupa sögur, Volume I. Copenhagen, page 644:

     Ok síðan skar hann um endilangt með knífi, ok tók í brott tvo steina; […]‎

     And then cut him wide open with a knife and took away two calculi; […]

4. mineral blee, colour, paint
   • Separate Saga of St. Olaf 112, in 1853, P. A. Munch, C. R. Unger, Saga Olafs konungs ens Helga. Christiania, page 124:

     […] steint beði hvitom steini oc ravðum. […]‎

     […] bed painted with white colour and red, […]

5. a stone building, cloister, cell (especially of an anchoret)
   • Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar 75, in 1835, F. Magnússon, C. C. Rafn, Fornmanna sögur, Volume X. Copenhagen, page 373:

     […] oc valði sèr til bygþar æinn stein, […]‎

     […] and chose a stone hermitage as an abode, […]

Declension

  Declension of steinn (strong a-stem)

masculine	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	steinn	steinninn	steinar	steinarnir
accusative	stein	steininn	steina	steinana
dative	steini	steininum	steinum	steinunum
genitive	steins	steinsins	steina	steinanna

Derived terms

Terms derived from steinn

• á milli steins ok sleggju ‎(“between the anvil and the sledge-hammer”)
• augasteinn, augnasteinn ‎(“eyeball”)
• brennasteinn, brennisteinn ‎(“brimstone, sulphur”)
• gimsteinn ‎(“gemstone, jewel”)
• segulsteinn ‎(“lodestone”)
• steina ‎(“to stain”)
• steinbítr ‎(“seawolf”)
• steinblindr ‎(“stone-blind”)
• steindelfr ‎(“wagtail”)

• steingeitarmerki ‎(“Capricorn”)
• steingeit ‎(“ibex”)
• steinhjarta ‎(“heart of stone”)
• steinkast ‎(“stone's throw”)
• steinligr ‎(“stony”)
• steinmeistari ‎(“stonemason”)
• steinóði, steinóðr ‎(“violent”)
• steinpikka ‎(“mason's pick”)

• steinsetja ‎(“to set in stone”)
• steinsmíði ‎(“articles worked of stone”)
• steinsmið ‎(“stonemasonry”)
• steinsmiðr ‎(“stonemason”)
• steinsótt ‎(“calculus”)
• steintálga ‎(“stonemasonry”)
• steintjald ‎(“coloured tent”)
• steinþró ‎(“stone coffin”)

Descendants

• English: stain
• Faroese: steinur m
• Icelandic: steinn m
• Norwegian Bokmål: stein m, sten m
• Norwegian Nynorsk: stein m

• Old Danish steen
  • Danish: sten c
• Old Swedish sten, Runic stæinn
  • Swedish: sten c

References

• steinn in Geir T. Zoëga (1910) A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• steinn in An Icelandic-English Dictionary, R. Cleasby and G. Vigfússon, Clarendon Press, 1874, at Internet Archive.
• steinn in A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, G. T. Zoëga, Clarendon Press, 1910, at Internet Archive.