Kamerad

See also: kamerad

German

Etymology

Borrowed from French camarade in the 16th century, ultimately from Latin camera (“chamber”), from Ancient Greek καμάρα (kamára).

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /kaməˈʁaːt/
  • Audio(file)
  • Hyphenation: Ka‧me‧rad
  • Rhymes: -aːt

Noun

Kamerad m (weak, genitive Kameraden, plural Kameraden, feminine Kameradin)

  1. (military) comrade (fellow soldier)
    • 1929, Horst Wessel (lyrics and music), “Horst-Wessel-Lied (Nazi Party anthem 1930–1945)”:
      Kam'raden, die Rotfront und Reaktion erschossen, / Marschier'n im Geist in unser'n Reihen mit.
      Comrades shot by the Red Front and reactionaries / March in spirit within our ranks.
  2. comrade (fellow, companion)
  3. (colloquial) guy, fellow
  4. (slang, term of address) neo-nazi, right-wing extremist

Usage notes
  • Does not carry the association with socialism or communism that comrade has in English or its cognates in other languages. (See Genosse for the German equivalent.)
  • On the contrary, due to its primary usage as a military term, it is used as a term of address among right wing groups and can be used as a moniker for their members. However, the association is not inherent to the word itself, which is a neutral term in regular usage, but rather understood from context.
  • Kamerad has historically been used as a truce or surrender word.

Declension
Declension of Kamerad [masculine, weak]
singular plural
indef. def. noun def. noun
nominative ein der Kamerad die Kameraden
genitive eines des Kameraden der Kameraden
dative einem dem Kameraden den Kameraden
accusative einen den Kameraden die Kameraden

Derived terms

Descendants
  • → Polish: kamrat
  • → Silesian: kamrat

See also
  • Waffengefährte

Further reading
  • “Kamerad” in Duden online
  • “Kamerad” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
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