Brosame

German

Alternative forms

• Brosam, Brosamen

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle High German brosem, broseme or brosme, from Old High German brōsama or brōsma. There is a connection to Old English brosnian (“to fall apart, to foul”). Therefore, originally, Brosame meant broken off piece. Not related to Samen (“seed”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbʁoːzaˑmə/

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: Bro‧sa‧me

Noun

Brosame f (genitive Brosame, plural Brosamen)

1. (dated or regional, southern Germany, Austria, Switzerland) crumb

   Synonym: Krümel

   Für ihn blieben nur die Brosamen übrig.

   Only the crumbs were left for him.

   • 1994, Ursula Assaf-Nowak, Der Vorbote, Gleichnisse und Gedichte, translation of Khalil Gibran, The Forerunner, 1920, →ISBN

     Seine Liebe ist die eines Anspruchslosen, der sich mit Brosamen zufriedengibt, selbst wenn er an einer königlichen Tafel sitzt.

     It is the love of a needy one, who picks crumbs even as he sits at kingly feasts.

Usage notes

• In contemporary German the derivative Brösel (an old diminutive) is more common (but also regionally restricted).

Declension

Declension of Brosame [feminine]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	eine	die	Brosame	die	Brosamen
genitive	einer	der	Brosame	der	Brosamen
dative	einer	der	Brosame	den	Brosamen
accusative	eine	die	Brosame	die	Brosamen

Derived terms

• Brösel

See also

• Brot, Same

References

• “GB11522” in Deutsches Wörterbuch von Jacob und Wilhelm Grimm, 16 vols., Leipzig 1854–1961.
• “Brosame” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• “Brosame” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon
• Notes:

Further reading

• “Brosame” in Duden online