lykill

Icelandic

Etymology

From Old Norse lykill, from Proto-Germanic *lukilaz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈlɪːcɪtl/
• Rhymes: -ɪːcɪtl

Noun

lykill m (genitive singular lykils, nominative plural lyklar or (archaic/obsolete) luklar)

1. a key

   Ekki gleyma lyklunum þegar þú ferð út.

   Don't forget the keys on your way out.

   Ég hef þrjá lykla og tyggjó í vasanum.

   I have three keys and some gum in my pocket.

2. (music) a clef
3. (computing) a key; one of several small, usually square buttons on a typewriter or computer keyboard

   Synonyms: takki, hnappur

4. (cryptography) a cryptographic key, a key
5. (botany) primula, primrose (plant of the genus Primula)

Declension

Declension of lykill (masculine)

	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	lykill	lykillinn	lyklar, luklar1	lyklarnir, luklarnir1
accusative	lykil	lykilinn	lykla, lukla1	lyklana, luklana1
dative	lykli, lukli1	lyklinum, luklinum1	lyklum, luklum1	lyklunum, luklunum1
genitive	lykils	lykilsins	lykla, lukla1	lyklanna, luklanna1

¹Archaic/obsolete.

Derived terms

• dreifilykill
• einkalykill
• lyklaborð
• lyklakippa

References

• Ásgeir Blöndal Magnússon (1989) Íslensk orðsifjabók, Reykjavík: Árni Magnússon Institute for Icelandic Studies, →ISBN (Available at Málið.is under the “Eldri orðabækur” tab.)
• Kristín Bjarnadóttir, editor (2002–2025), “lykill”, in Beygingarlýsing íslensks nútímamáls [The Database of Modern Icelandic Inflection] (in Icelandic), Reykjavík: The Árni Magnússon Institute for Icelandic Studies
• Mörður Árnason (2019) Íslensk orðabók, 5th edition, Reykjavík: Forlagið
• “lykill” in the Dictionary of Modern Icelandic (in Icelandic) and ISLEX (in the Nordic languages)
• “lykill”, in Ritmálssafn Orðabókar Háskólans [The Written Collection of the Lexicological Institute] (in Icelandic), Reykjavík: The Árni Magnússon Institute for Icelandic Studies, (Can we date this quote?)

Old Norse

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *lukilaz. Akin to lúka +‎ -ill.

Noun

lykill m (genitive lykils, plural luklar)

1. key

Declension

Declension of lykill (strong a-stem)

masculine	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	lykill	lykillinn	lyklar, luklar	lyklarnir, luklarnir
accusative	lykil	lykilinn	lykla, lukla	lyklana, luklana
dative	lykli, lukli	lyklinum, luklinum	lyklum, luklum	lyklunum, luklunum
genitive	lykils	lykilsins	lykla, lukla	lyklanna, luklanna

Descendants

• Icelandic: lykill m
• Faroese: lykil m
• Norwegian Nynorsk: lykel m
• Old Swedish: lykel
  • Swedish: (dialectal) lyckel c, likul
• Old Danish: lykæl
  • Danish: (Jutlandic) løgel c, løgle
• ⇒ Old Norse: nykill (see there for further descendants)

Further reading

• Zoëga, Geir T. (1910) “lykill”, in A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press; also available at the Internet Archive