bletë
See also: blete
Albanian
Alternative forms
- bjetë, mbletë, bgjetë, gjetë
Etymology
From Proto-Albanian *m(e)lítā, from Proto-Indo-European *mélit (“honey”). Cognate to Greek μέλισσα (mélissa, “bee”).[1] In view of the -bl- cluster one might also consider as alternative Proto-Indo-European *mlīto (“sweet”), in Gothic bleiþs (“kind-hearted, merciful”), Old High German blīdi (“merry, glad”), Hittite [Term?] (/miliddu/, “sweet”). Alternatively from *mbletë, a borrowing from Greco-Latin *melettum, from Ancient Greek μέλιττα (mélitta),[2] but this is unlikely.
Alternatively reconstructed as coming from Proto-Albanian *mletə < Pre-Proto-Albanian *m(e)lítā- / *mlai̯tā- "belonging to honey". [3]
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈbletə/
- Rhymes: -etə
- Hyphenation: blé‧të
Noun
bletë f (plural bletë, definite bleta, definite plural bletët)
- bee (insect)
- Synonym: mjalcë
- (collective) swarm (of bees)
- hive
- (adjective, figurative) quick, fast at work
Declension
| singular | plural | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| indefinite | definite | indefinite | definite | |
| nominative | bletë | bleta | bletë | bletët |
| accusative | bletën | |||
| dative | blete | bletës | bletëve | bletëve |
| ablative | bletësh | |||
Derived terms
References
- ^ Demiraj, Bardhyl (1997) Albanische Etymologien: Untersuchungen zum albanischen Erbwortschatz [Albanian Etymologies: […]] (Leiden Studies in Indo-European; 7)[1] (in German), Amsterdam, Atlanta: Rodopi, page 105
- ^ Orel, Vladimir E. (1998) “bletë”, in Albanian Etymological Dictionary, Leiden, Boston, Köln: Brill, →ISBN, page 29
- ^ Demiraj, Bardhyl et al. (2021) “bletë”, in DPEWA. Digitales Philologisch-Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altalbanischen [DPEWA. Digital Philological-Etymological Dictionary of Old Albanian]