blatobran

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

From blato +‎ braniti.

Possible calque of Italian parafango or French garde-boue, attested since at least 1930.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /blâtobraːn/

Noun

blȁtobrān n (Cyrillic spelling бла̏тобра̄н)

1. fender (US), wing (UK) (panel of a car which encloses the wheel area)
   • 1930, Miroslav Krleža, Kniježevnik‎^[1], number GOD. III BROJ 1:

     Jurio je po ovim našim cestama sa svojim Austro -Daimlerom sa 110 km na sat, i kad bi sluge prali Austro-Daimler poslije takve ture, s mašine i blatobrana samo je vrcalo perje gusaka, kokoši i raca, što su ostale pod Klanfarovim pneumaticima

     He raced along these roads of ours with his Austro-Daimler at 110 km per hour, and when the servants would wash the Austro-Daimler after such a tour, the machine and fenders would only have feathers of geese, chickens and ducks, which remained under Klanfar's tires.

   • 1935, Zdenka Jušić-Seunik, “Ono jače od odluke”, in ПРЕГЛЕД‎^[2], number Година ІХ, Књига XI:

     Nije ni čuo signal automobila koji se pojavio pred njim. Reflektori sunuše pred njim, vrisak se prolomi. Blatobran ga je zahvatio i odbacio u kraj . Lupnuo je glavom u rub pločnika. Pred očima mu zaigralo.

     He didn't even hear the signal of the car that appeared in front of him. Spotlights flashed before him, a scream broke out. The mudguard caught him and threw him to the end. He hit his head on the edge of the pavement. It danced before his eyes.

Further reading

• “blatobran”, in Hrvatski jezični portal [Croatian language portal] (in Serbo-Croatian), 2006–2024