etwa

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German

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Etymology

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From Middle High German etwā, contraction of etewā (also eteswā), from Old High German edde(s)hwār (somewhere). For the first component compare etlich, etwas; the second is wo (where). A related formation was Middle High German ete(s)wanne, in which the second component is wann (when). It yielded modern etwan, which was displaced by the 19th century.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈɛtva/
  • Audio:(file)

Adverb

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etwa

  1. approximately
    Synonyms: in etwa, rund, ungefähr, zirka
    Das Gebäude ist etwa 30 Meter hoch.
    The height of the building is approximately 30 metres.
  2. for instance
    Synonyms: beispielsweise, zum Beispiel, wie
    bei Behinderungen, etwa durch Sturmschäden
    in case of obstructions, for instance through storm damage
    • 2022 October 28, “Twitter-Übernahme von Musk: Die Rechten feiern und fordern Trump zurück”, in Der Spiegel[1], →ISSN:
      Etwa AfD-Politikerin Beatrix von Storch twitterte: »Das linke woke Paralleluniversum wackelt.«
      For instance, AfD politician Beatrix von Storch tweeted: "The woke left's parallel universe is crumbling."
  3. by any chance, possibly
    Synonyms: gegebenenfalls, möglicherweise, unter Umständen, vielleicht
    Alle etwa anfallenden Zusatzkosten trägt der Auftraggeber.
    All additional costs that may be incurred shall be borne by the customer.
  4. (modal) really (expresses surprise or the expectation of a negative answer)
    Willst du etwa schon gehen?
    Do you really want to leave so soon?

Derived terms

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Further reading

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  • etwa” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache

Nzadi

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Noun

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etwâ (plural atwâ)

  1. bag

Noun

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etwâ (plural etwâ)

  1. banana cluster

Further reading

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  • Crane, Thera, Larry Hyman, Simon Nsielanga Tukumu (2011) A grammar of Nzadi [B.865]: a Bantu language of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, →ISBN