Harn

See also: harn

German

Etymology

From Middle High German and Old High German harn, from the Proto-Indo-European root *(s)ḱer- (“dung, filth”). Cognate with Lithuanian šarmas (“lye”) (for semantic connection, compare lant). Exclusively High German form without s-mobile alongside Proto-Germanic *skarną (“dung”), whence dialectal English sharn and German Schierling (“hemlock”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /harn/, [haʁn], [haɐ̯n], [haːn]
  • Audio:(file)
  • Homophones: Hahn (some speakers), Haaren, harren (casual speech)

Noun

Harn m (strong, genitive Harns or Harnes, plural Harne)

  1. (higher register, rare) urine
    Synonyms: (usual formal word) Urin, (familiar) Pipi, (coarse) Pisse

Usage notes

  • Now used chiefly in several medical compounds. Otherwise it is highly formal and rare.
  • Outside of a scientific-medical context, Harn is more often used for animals than humans.

Declension

Declension of Harn [masculine, strong]
singular plural
indef. def. noun def. noun
nominative ein der Harn die Harne
genitive eines des Harns, Harnes der Harne
dative einem dem Harn, Harne1 den Harnen
accusative einen den Harn die Harne

1Now rare, see notes.

Further reading

  • “Harn” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
  • “Harn” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon
  • “Harn” in Duden online
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