Streich

German

Etymology

From Middle High German streich, from Old High German *streih, from Proto-West Germanic *straik (“stroke”). Compare Dutch streek, English stroke. In Middle High German the form strīch also occurs, which is either an adaptation to, or a new derivation from, the underlying verb streichen. In Modern Standard German both forms would have merged, but most dialects continue West Germanic ai.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /ʃtʁaɪ̯ç/
  • audio(file)
  • audio(file)
  • Rhymes: -aɪ̯ç

Noun

Streich m (strong, genitive Streiches or Streichs, plural Streiche)

  1. (higher register) stroke (act of striking e.g. with a hand or a cutting weapon)
    Synonyms: Hieb, Schlag
  2. (figurative) feat, coup (quick and decisive act)
    Synonyms: Coup, Schlag, Handstreich
  3. (by narrowing especially) practical joke, prank

Declension
Declension of Streich [masculine, strong]
singular plural
indef. def. noun def. noun
nominative ein der Streich die Streiche
genitive eines des Streiches, Streichs der Streiche
dative einem dem Streich, Streiche1 den Streichen
accusative einen den Streich die Streiche

1Now rare, see notes.

Derived terms

Further reading
  • “Streich” in Duden online
  • “Streich” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
  • “Streich” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon
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