Iltis

German

Iltis

Etymology

From Middle High German iltis, from Old High German illitiso, illintiso, of uncertain origin.

Perhaps a compound from the Proto-Indo-European roots *h₁el- (“red, brown”) and *weys- (“to flow, run”). The latter was probably used for animal secretions, whence the noun *wiso- or *wisós (“fluidity, slime, reek, poison”), as in Wiesel and Wisent; compare Ancient Greek ἰός (iós) and Latin virus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɪltɪs/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: Il‧tis

Noun

Iltis m (strong, genitive Iltisses or Iltis, plural Iltisse)

1. polecat (Mustela putorius)

Declension

Declension of Iltis [masculine, strong]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	ein	der	Iltis	die	Iltisse
genitive	eines	des	Iltisses, Iltis	der	Iltisse
dative	einem	dem	Iltis, Iltisse1	den	Iltissen
accusative	einen	den	Iltis	die	Iltisse

¹Now rare, see notes.

Derived terms

• stinken wie ein Iltis

Further reading

• “Iltis” in Duden online
• “Iltis” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache