zween

• zwen (Early New High German)

From Middle High German zwēne, from Old High German zwēne.

• IPA^(key): /tsveːn/

zween m (feminine zwo, neuter zwei or zwey)

1. (obsolete) two

• The gender distinction in the numeral zwei was widely given up in modern German. Some grammarians, well into the 19th century, continued to recommend it but it was rarely applied and is now entirely obsolete. Zwo, the original feminine, lives on as a variant without gender distinction.

As an example, Es steht in zwei Büchern, Es steht in zweien Büchern and Es steht in zweien, mean "It is found in two [books]", the latter does not have a substantive after it and is thus declined (in the dative case).

• Alemannic: zwe/zwee m, zwo/zwoo f, zwöi n; drei m or f or n, drụ̈/drü/drüü n
• Bavarian: zwen/zween m, zwo f, zwai n
• Luxembourgish: zwéin m, zwou f, zwee n
• Nürnbergisch: zwöi m, zwou f, zwa n