Hörnchen

German

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈhœʁn.çən/
  • Hyphenation: Hörn‧chen

Etymology 1

Horn +‎ -chen

Noun

Hörnchen n (strong, genitive Hörnchens, plural Hörnchen)

  1. diminutive of Horn
  2. ellipsis of Milchhörnchen (a German pastry, shaped like a croissant)
  3. ellipsis of Eishörnchen (ice cream cone)
Declension

Etymology 2

Back-formation from Eichhörnchen (squirrel), interpreting the first element as Eiche (oak).

Noun

Hörnchen n (strong, genitive Hörnchens, plural Hörnchen)

  1. squirrel (in the broad sense, member of the family Sciuridae)
Declension

Further reading

  • Hörnchen” in Duden online
  • Hörnchen” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache