troll

See also: Troll, tröll, and trøll

English
WOTD – 26 December 2023

Pronunciation
  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /tɹɒl/, /tɹəʊl/
  • (General American) IPA(key): /tɹɑl/, /tɹoʊl/
  • Audio (AU)(file)
  • Audio (US)(file)
  • Rhymes: -ɒl, -əʊl

Etymology 1

Partly:

Doublet of droll and trow.

cognates

Noun

troll (plural trolls)

  1. Originally (Scandinavia, mythology), a giant supernatural being; now (European folklore, fantasy), a grotesque humanoid creature living in caves or hills or under bridges. [from early 17th c.]
    Synonym: (Orkney, Shetland, dated) trow
    • 1851, Benjamin Thorpe, “Norwegian Traditions. [The Girl at the Sæter.]”, in Northern Mythology, […], volumes II (Scandinavian Popular Traditions and Superstitions), London: Edward Lumley, […], →OCLC, page 7:
      He followed their advice, and rode through a rye-field, where the Trolls were unable to follow him, but in their exasperation cried after him, "The red cock shall crow over thy dwelling." And behold! his house stood in a blaze.
    • 1856, R[alph] W[aldo] Emerson, “Ability”, in English Traits, Boston, Mass.: Phillips, Sampson, and Company, →OCLC, page 81:
      The Scandinavian fancied himself surrounded by Trolls,—a kind of goblin men, with vast power of work and skilful production,—divine stevedores, carpenters, reapers, smiths, and masons, swift to reward every kindness done them, with gifts of gold and silver.
    • 1881, P. Chr. Asbjörnsen [i.e., Peter Christen Asbjørnsen], “Peter Gynt”, in H. L. Brækstad, transl., Round the Yule Log. Norwegian Folk and Fairy Tales, London: Sampson Low, Marston, Searle, & Rivington, →OCLC, page 150:
      The bear got so angry that he rushed at the trolls and scratched them all over, while Peter took the other handspike and hammered away at them as if he wanted to beat their brains out. The trolls had to clear out at last, but Peter stayed and enjoyed himself with all the Christmas fare the whole week. After that the trolls were not heard of there for many years.
    • 1922, Eleanour Sinclair Rohde, “The Anglo-Saxon Herbals”, in The Old English Herbals, London: Longmans, Green and Co. […], →OCLC, page 3:
      In these manuscripts we are again in an atmosphere of eotens and trolls, there are traces of even older terrors, when the first Teuton settlers in Europe struggled with the aborigines who lived in caves, hints as elusive as the phantom heroes in the Saxon poems, and as unforgettable.
  2. (by extension)
    1. (derogatory, informal) A company, person, etc., that owns and legally enforces copyrights, patents, trademarks, or other intellectual property rights in an aggressive and opportunistic manner, often with no intention of commercially exploiting the subjects of the rights.
      Hyponyms: copyright troll, patent troll, trademark troll
      • 2013 June 8, “Obama goes troll-hunting: The president proposes a new round of intellectual-property reform”, in The Economist‎, volume 407, number 8839, London: The Economist Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2022-10-16, page 55:
        The solitary, lumbering trolls of Scandinavian mythology would sometimes be turned to stone by exposure to sunlight. Barack Obama is hoping that several measures announced on June 4th will have a similarly paralysing effect on their modern incarnation, the patent troll.
    2. (derogatory, slang) An ugly or unpleasant person.
      Synonyms: see Thesaurus:ugly person
      Antonyms: see Thesaurus:beautiful person
      • 1999, David Lubar, “Taking the Tour”, in Hidden Talents (A Tor Book), New York, N.Y.: Tom Doherty Associates, →ISBN, page 17:
        The way Torchie had talked about him, I expected him to be some kind of troll. But he could have passed for one of those actors who makes a couple of movies, gets real popular with the girls for a year or two, and then vanishes from sight. He had that kind of face.
      • 2009, Judy Chicago, Sarah Quinton, Allyson Mitchell, Jenni Sorkin, When Women Rule the World: Judy Chicago in Thread: […], Toronto, Ont.: Textile Museum of Canada, →ISBN, page 96:
        In this work, the abject object—a sculpture of a fat, hairy woman—is heartbreakingly comforted by a text that claims the artist's love and desire to protect the 'ugly' troll.
      • 2010, Linda Francis Lee, chapter 13, in The Devil in the Junior League, New York, N.Y.: St. Martin’s Press, →ISBN, page 116:
        She sulked as we returned downstairs, her own more colorful clothes stuffed into her bright green shoulder bag. / "I just wish I didn't have to dress like such a troll." / "Troll? Impossible. I'm wearing beige and do I look like a troll?" / "Since you asked—"
      • 2012 August 29, James Classi, “Round Three”, in Heatseeker, Bloomington, Ind.: AuthorHouse, →ISBN, page 26:
        Edwin Baer was an ugly troll of a man. He stood just about five feet, six inches and maybe weighed 140 pounds soaking wet.
    3. (astronomy, meteorology) An optical ejection from the top of the electrically active core region of a thunderstorm that is red in colour that seems to occur after tendrils of vigorous sprites extend downward towards cloudtops.
Derived terms
Translations

Etymology 2

The verb is derived from Late Middle English trollen, trolle (“to go about, wander; to move (something) to and fro, rock; to roll; to turn”) [and other forms],[3] from Old French troller, trôler (“to run here and there; to walk aimlessly, ramble, stroll; (hunting) to wander about looking for game”) (modern French troller); further etymology uncertain, possibly related to Middle High German trollen (“to stroll”) (modern German trollen (“(informal) to move slowly, trundle; to push off, toddle off”)),[4] ultimately from Proto-Germanic *truzlōną (“to lumber”), which is probably related to *trudaną (“to step on, tread”) (see further at etymology 1). Doublet of trull.

Verb sense 4.2.2 (“to fish using a line and bait or lures trailed behind a boat”) is possibly influenced by trail and/or trawl[4]

The noun is probably derived from the verb. Noun sense 3 (“person who makes or posts inflammatory or insincere statements in an attempt to lure others into combative argument”) is possibly influenced by troll (etymology 1).[5]

cognates

Verb

troll (third-person singular simple present trolls, present participle trolling, simple past and past participle trolled)

  1. Senses relating to a rolling motion.
    1. (transitive)
      1. To move (something, especially a round object) by, or as if by, rolling; to bowl, to roll, to trundle. [from 15th c.]
      2. (obsolete) Often followed by in: to cause (something) to flow or roll in like a stream.
    2. (intransitive)
      1. To roll; also, to turn round and round; to rotate, to spin, to whirl. [from early 15th c.]
      2. To move or walk at a leisurely pace; to ramble, to saunter, to stroll. [from late 14th c.]
        • 1635, Fra[ncis] Quarles, “Canto XI. Mat[thew] VII. XIV.”, in Emblemes, London: […] G[eorge] M[iller] and sold at at Iohn Marriots shope […], →OCLC, book II, stanza 1, page 105:
          Prepoſt'rous foole, thou troul'ſt amiſſe: / Thou err'ſt; That's not the vvay, 'Tis this: / Thy hopes, inſtructed by thine Eye, / Make thee appeare more neare than I; […]
      3. (specifically, slang) Chiefly of a man: synonym of cruise (“to stroll about to find a (male) sexual partner”). [from 20th c.]
      4. (obsolete) Followed by in: to flow or roll in like a stream.
  2. Senses relating to the motion of passing around.
    1. (transitive)
      1. (music, archaic) To sing the parts of (a catch, round, or similar song) in succession; also (generally), to sing (a song) freely or in a carefree way, or loudly. [from 16th c.]
      2. (obsolete) To pass (something, specifically a bowl or other communal drinking vessel) from one person to another; to circulate, to send about.
        • c. 1553 (date written), “S.” [pseudonym; attributed to William Stevenson], […] Gammer Gurtons Nedle: […], London: […] Thomas Colwell, published 1575, →OCLC; reprinted as John S. Farmer, editor, Gammer Gurton’s Needle […] (The Tudor Facsimile Texts), [London: […] John S. Farmer], 1910, →OCLC, Act II, scene i, signature B, verso:
          Then Tyb my wyſe, that as her lyfe / loueth well good ale to ſeeke, / Full ofte drynkes ſhee, tyll ye may ſee / the teares run downe her cheekes: / Then dooth ſhe trowle, to mee the bowle / euen as a mault worme should, / And ſayth ſweete hart, I took my part, / of this ioly good ale and olde.
        • 1599 (first performance; published 1600), Thomas Dekker, “The Shomakers Holiday. Or The Gentle Craft. […]. The Second Three-mans Song.”, in The Dramatic Works of Thomas Dekker […], volume I, London: John Pearson […], published 1873, →OCLC, page 6:
          Trowle the boll, the iolly Nut-browne boll, / And here kind mate to thee: / Let's ſing a dirge for Saint Hughes ſoule, / And downe it merrily.
        • 1819 December 20 (indicated as 1820), Walter Scott, chapter VI, in Ivanhoe; a Romance. […], volume II, Edinburgh: […] Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co. […], →OCLC, page 88:
          Come, trowl the brown bowl to me, / Bully boy, bully boy, / Come, trowl the brown bowl to me: / Ho! jolly Jenkin, I spy a knave in drinking, / Come, trowl the brown bowl to me.
    2. (intransitive)
      1. (archaic) Of bells: to ring a sequence of tones in a resounding manner.
      2. (music, archaic) Of a person: to sing the parts of a catch, round, or similar song in succession; also (generally), to sing freely or in a carefree way, or loudly.
      3. (music, archaic) Of a song: to be sung freely or in a carefree way, or loudly; also, of a tune: to be constantly in someone's mind.
      4. (obsolete) Of a bowl or other communal drinking vessel, or the drink inside it: to be passed around from one person to another.
  3. Senses relating to a light, quick motion.
    1. (transitive)
      1. To say (something) lightly and quickly, or in a deep, resounding voice.
      2. (obsolete) To move (the tongue) lightly and quickly when speaking.
        • 1667, John Milton, “Book X”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC, lines 610 and 614–616:
          [T]hat fair femal Troop […] / Bred onely and completed to the taſte / Of luſtful appetence, to ſing, to dance, / To dreſs, and troule the Tongue, and roule the Eye.
    2. (intransitive)
      1. To speak lightly and quickly, or in a deep, resounding voice.
        • [1540], Thomas Smyth, “A Lytell Treatyse agaynst Sedicyous Persons”, in William Carew Hazlitt, editor, Fugitive Tracts Written in Verse which Illustrate the Condition of Religious and Political Feeling in England […] (First Series (1493–1600)), [London: […] Chiswick Press, Whittingham and Wilkins] […], published 1875, →OCLC:
          Such ſhuld be our trollynges⸝ Chriſt vs ſo teacheth / Commaunding euer peace⸝ amonges vs for to be / Vntruly he trolleth⸝ that otherwyſe preacheth / Styreng to any ſedicion⸝ malyce or enuye
      2. (obsolete) To move lightly and quickly; especially of the tongue when speaking; to wag.
        • a. 1617 (date written), Francis Beaumont, “The Ex-ale-tation of Ale”, in The Works of the English Poets, from Chaucer to Cowper; […], volume VI, London: […] J[oseph] Johnson [et al.], published 1810, →OCLC, page 205, column 2:
          Fill him but a boule, it will make his tongue troule, / For flowing speech flows from a [pot of good ale].
        • c. 1635–1636 (date written), Iohn Ford [i.e., John Ford], The Fancies, Chast and Noble: […], London: […] E[lizabeth] P[urslowe] for Henry Seile, […], published 1638, →OCLC, Act III, page 39:
          His tongue troules like a Mill-clack: a towzes the Lady ſiſters, as a tumbling Dog does young Rabets; […]
  4. Senses relating to fishing.
    1. (transitive)
      1. (fishing) To fish in (a place) using a running fishing line (that is, a line with a hook on the end which is drawn along the water surface, possibly a line which would originally have been spooled on to a troll (etymology 2, noun sense 6.1)).
      2. (figurative) To attract or draw out (someone or something); to allure, to elicit, to entice, to lure. [from 16th c.]
    2. (intransitive)
      1. (fishing) To fish using a running fishing line.
        • 1713, John Gay, “Rural Sports. A Georgic. Inscribed to Mr. [Alexander] Pope.”, in Poems on Several Occasions, volume I, London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], and Bernard Lintot, […], published 1720, →OCLC, page 16, lines 261–264:
          I, nor chuſe to bear / The thieviſh nightly net, not barbed ſpear: / Nor drain I ponds the golden carp to take, / Nor trovvle for pikes, diſpeoplers of the lake.
        • 1881, P. Chr. Asbjörnsen [i.e., Peter Christen Asbjørnsen], “Legends of the Mill”, in H. L. Brækstad, transl., Round the Yule Log. Norwegian Folk and Fairy Tales, London: Sampson Low, Marston, Searle, & Rivington, →OCLC, page 153:
          My flies alone disturbed the placid waters. A half-grown-up lad, who was standing behind me on the bank, advised me to "troll with bait"—a cluster of worms fastened to the hook, which is dragged in jerks over the surface of the water—and offered to find the bait for me.
      2. (fishing, Scotland, US) To fish using a line and bait or lures trailed behind a boat similarly to trawling. [from c. 1600]
        • 1834–1874, George Bancroft, History of the United States, from the Discovery of the American Continent, volume (please specify |volume=I to X), Boston, Mass.: Little, Brown and Company [et al.], →OCLC:
          Their young men […] trolled along the brooks that abounded in fish.
  5. Senses relating to "fishing" for a reaction.
    1. (figurative, originally Internet slang) To post irrelevant or inflammatory statements in an online discussion in an attempt to start a heated argument or to derail a conversation, either for one's personal entertainment or as part of an organized political campaign. [from late 20th c.]
      Don't pay attention to that guy, he's always trolling this board.
      When an argument gets heated, it can often be difficult to figure out who's serious and who's just trolling.
      • 1993 October 11, “danny burstein”, “I trolled, and no one bit!”, in alt.folklore.urban‎ (Usenet):
        I trolled, and no one bit! [title]
      • 2008 July 12, Megan McArdle, “Note to Trolls”, in The Atlantic‎, Washington, D.C.: The Atlantic Monthly Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-12-25:
        There are plenty of commenters who disagree with me vehemently, and are also valued members of the community; if you find yourself unsure as to how to leave a comment without trolling, try asking yourself WWFD (What Would Freddie Do?). Remember, Smokey the Bear says, "Only you can prevent flame wars".
      • 2017 November 19, Paul Sperry, “Here are some of the biggest myths of the Russian-collusion story”, in New York Post‎, New York, N.Y.: News Corp, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2024-03-30:
        Russian Twitter and Facebook bots trolled both the left and the right with agitprop — in what appears to have been a general effort to deepen divisions and sow political chaos in America, not to favor one party or candidate over the other.
      • 2020, Emily Segal, Mercury Retrograde, New York, N.Y.: Deluge Books, →ISBN:
        Could you be trolling and believe in it at the same time?
    2. (by extension) To persistently harass someone over the Internet.
      Many people have been trolling me due to my activism, but I don't let it get to me.
      • 2013 December 24, Philippa H Stewart, “Online feminists are taking on the trolls”, in Al Jazeera English‎, archived from the original on 2021-01-23:
        No one who spoke to Al Jazeera seemed surprised that 54 percent of girls had suffered some form of online harassment. […] Internet psychologist Graham Jones offers some explanations as to the mentality of people who troll online. In an email to Al Jazeera he explained that some forms of trolling could be unintentional.
      • 2020 April 23, Chris Zappone, “Pro-China trolls fake accounts to hound foreign media over coronavirus”, in The Sydney Morning Herald‎, Sydney, NSW: Nine Entertainment, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2022-07-07:
        Although many media outlets were being trolled by Chinese accounts well before 2020, "the main campaign appears to have picked up steam around mid-March as a loose network of Twitter accounts designed to mimic and harass Western media", according to the Institute's researchers Elise Thomas and Albert Zang.
      • 2021 November 8, Hafsa Lodi, “I was trolled by pro-Taliban extremists after writing about Muslim feminism”, in Business Insider‎, New York, N.Y.: Insider Inc., →OCLC, archived from the original on 2024-04-07:
        Bullying tactics such as trolling are used to reinforce power dynamics and keep females quiet and complacent with timeworn traditions. And while I could spend hours typing up elaborate responses to each Tweet, I have only two words for men who try to use my religion to justify misogyny: "mute" and "block."
      • 2024 February 27, Anita Singh, “Amber Heard ’trolled by Saudi-backed bots’ during Johnny Depp court battles”, in Chris Evans, editor, The Daily Telegraph‎, London: Telegraph Media Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2024-03-06:
        According to an investigation by Tortoise Media, which examined more than one million tweets, more than 50 per cent of anti-Heard messages in the run-up to the 2022 defamation case were "inauthentic" – either from automated "bot" accounts or people hired to attack the actress. ¶ They called her an "abuser", a "liar" and a "traitor", while proclaiming Depp's innocence of domestic abuse allegations. ¶ The Tortoise podcast, Who Trolled Amber?, alleges that a number of the accounts tweeted in Arabic and were full of praise for the Saudi regime or its ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
    3. (by extension, colloquial) To prank, tease, or mess with someone in a lighthearted way.
      Synonym: punk
      The actress was widely trolled online after accidentally revealing that she didn't know the names of the continents.
      • 2014 November 12, Alyssa Rosenberg, “Time Magazine’s silly proposal to ban the word "feminist"”, in The Washington Post‎, Washington, D.C.: The Washington Post Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 13 November 2014:
        This is lazy outrage bait. But I am biting anyway, because while Time could have trolled readers by calling a ban for the word on "feminist" any time, the magazine is considering it in a year when the conversation about the meaning of the term is as rich as it has been in some time–even if some of that conversation is being conducted through mass culture.
      • 2020 March 2, Donald Trump, President Trump Rally in Charlotte, North Carolina‎, via C-SPAN:
        We like to troll, we like to go the night before one of their primaries, we just, we do a little trolling, it's called we do a little trolling.
      • 2021 September 22, Sam Cooper, “An old teammate of Cristiano Ronaldo's trolled his dislike of dessert by scoffing a giant pudding on his YouTube channel”, in Business Insider‎, New York, N.Y.: Insider Inc., →OCLC, archived from the original on 2024-04-07:
        Cristiano Ronaldo's dislike of dessert has been trolled by a former teammate. ¶ Ben Foster proudly showed off his apple crumble, having joked that he was skipping dessert.
      • 2024 March 11, Sammi Burke, “See One of Taylor Swift's Dancers Troll Her on Stage During '22'”, in Parade‎, New York, N.Y.: The Arena Group, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2024-04-07:
        Taylor Swift, who could've been crowned the queen of pranks in the early years of her career, is finding out what it feels like to be on the other side of a little onstage trolling.
Conjugation
Conjugation of troll
infinitive (to) troll
present tense past tense
1st-person singular troll trolled
2nd-person singular troll, trollest† trolled, trolledst†
3rd-person singular trolls, trolleth† trolled
plural troll
subjunctive troll trolled
imperative troll —
participles trolling trolled

†Archaic or obsolete.

Alternative forms
Derived terms
Descendants
  • Spanish: trolear
Translations
(transitive, intransitive) to move (something, especially a round object) by, or as if by, rolling — see bowl,‎ roll,‎ trundle
to turn round and round — see rotate,‎ spin,‎ whirl
to move or walk at a leisurely pace — see ramble,‎ saunter,‎ stroll
synonym of cruise — see cruise
(transitive, intransitive) to make or post inflammatory or insincere statements in an attempt to lure (someone) into combative argument
to attract or draw out (someone or something) — see elicit,‎ entice,‎ lure

Noun

troll (plural trolls)

  1. An act of moving round; a repetition, a routine.
  2. (fishing)
    1. An act of fishing by using a running fishing line, or by trailing a line with bait or lures behind a boat. [from c. 1600]
    2. A fishing line, bait, or lure used to fish in these ways.
  3. (figurative, originally Internet slang) A person who makes or posts inflammatory or insincere statements in an attempt to lure others into combative argument for purposes of personal entertainment or to manipulate their perception, especially in an online community or discussion; also, such a statement. [from late 20th c.]
    Hyponym: keyboard warrior
    Coordinate term: griefer
    • 2014 December 19, “Friday 2 January’s best TV”, in Alan Rusbridger, editor, The Guardian‎, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-11-07:
      Katie Hopkins: My Fat Story 9pm, TLC The professional troll and one-time Apprentice stirrer piles on the pounds in order to shed them in this two-part doc, which feels at times like an overly long This Morning item.
    • 2016 June 8, Quentin Hardy, “How gaming helped launch the attack of the internet trolls”, in The New York Times‎, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-06-16:
      That tendency to overdo it became visible as the worst kind of trolling on the internet about a decade ago, when griefers exported their habits from the gaming world into the larger world. […] From there, attacking people head-on—though almost always cloaked in anonymity—wasn't a big leap. And so much more on the internet became like a game, only the score consisted of attention, outrage or approval from like-minded trolls.
    • 2018 October 30, David Streitfeld, “Where trolls reigned free: A new history of Reddit [review of We are the Nerds: The Birth and Tumultuous Life of Reddit, the Internet’s Culture Laboratory (2018) by Christine Lagorio-Chafkin]”, in The New York Times‎, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-05-26:
      It was the place you went, shrouded in anonymity, for pornography, hard-core racism, revenge porn, Nazi cheerleading, Jew-baiting, creepshots, fat-shaming, mindless anarchy and pictures of dead kids or of women who had been beaten. If anyone bothered to look, Reddit was proof that on the internet, the trolls were in charge.
  4. (by extension, politics) A person who sows discord, or spreads misinformation or propaganda, in order to promote an agenda as part of an organized political campaign.
    • 2019 November 19, Shashank Bengali, Evan Halper, “Troll armies, a growth industry in the Philippines, may soon be coming to an election near you”, in Los Angeles Times‎, Los Angeles, Calif.: Los Angeles Times Communications, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-05-09:
      Already, U.S. operatives in both parties have made early efforts at using trolls for political gain. Rogue progressives stealthily launched fake social media campaigns against Roy Moore, the GOP nominee for Senate in Alabama, during a 2017 special election. Their campaign aimed to confuse voters into thinking Moore supported banning alcohol and that Russian bots were working on his behalf.
    • 2020 November 3, Sheera Frenkel, “Russian internet trolls are amplifying election fraud claims, researchers say”, in The New York Times‎, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-05-27:
      Social media accounts tied to a group of Russian trolls are amplifying claims of election fraud, according to researchers at the Election Integrity Partnership, a coalition of misinformation experts.
    • 2021 January 21, Steven Zeitchik, “An alleged Saudi troll campaign is targeting a movie about the murder of Jamal Khashoggi”, in The Washington Post‎, Washington, D.C.: The Washington Post Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2021-01-22:
      "The Dissident" saw as many as 500 low audience scores, out of just 2,400, flood the popular film-rating site Rotten Tomatoes on Jan. 12, filmmakers said, an act they believe came from trolls operating on behalf of the Saudi government to create a false sense of popular dissatisfaction.
    • 2022 February 28, Vincent Ni, “‘They were fooled by Putin’: Chinese historians speak out against Russian invasion”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian‎, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-05-27:
      And, perhaps unsurprisingly, pro-war Chinese trolls denounced the authors – who are based in Nanjing, Beijing, Hong Kong and Shanghai – as "shameful" and "traitorous". "Why did you not say anything during the west's invasion in Iraq," one quipped sarcastically.
  5. (music) A song the parts of which are sung in succession; a catch, a round.
    • 1820 September 13, Geoffrey Crayon [pseudonym; Washington Irving], “Little Britain”, in The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent., number VII, New York, N.Y.: […] C. S. Van Winkle, […], →OCLC, pages 106–107:
      At the opening of every club night he is called in to sing his "Confession of Faith," which is the famous old drinking trowl from Gammer Gurton's needle.
    • 1845, [John] Wilson, The Genius, and Character of Burns (Wiley and Putnam’s Library of Choice Reading), New York, N.Y.: Wiley and Putnam, […], →OCLC, page 103:
      And thence the catch and troll, while "laughter, holding both his sides" sheds tears to song and ballad pathetic on the woes of married life, and all the ills that "our flesh is heir to."
  6. (obsolete)
    1. A small wheel; specifically (fishing), the reel or winch of a fishing line.
    2. (except British, dialectal) A trolley.
Derived terms
Descendants
Translations
act of moving round — see repetition,‎ routine
fishing line, bait, or lure used to fish in these ways — see fishing line,‎ bait,‎ lure

References
  1. “trol, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
  2. “troll, n.2”, in OED Online Paid subscription required⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, September 2023; “troll1, n.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
  3. “trollen, v.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
  4. “troll, v.”, in OED Online Paid subscription required⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, September 2023; “troll2, v.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
  5. “troll, n.1”, in OED Online Paid subscription required⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, September 2023; “troll2, n.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.

Further reading

Chinese

Etymology

From English troll.

Pronunciation

Adjective

troll

  1. (Hong Kong Cantonese, slang) trolly (tending to troll)
    • 2017 December 3, TRANSPARENCE 澈‎, number 37, page 5:
      可以，可以show 你個人有幾troll。
      Yes, it can show how trolly you are.

Verb

troll

  1. (Hong Kong Cantonese, slang) to troll (to incite anger)

Derived terms

French

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /tʁɔl/

Etymology 1

From Swedish troll, from Old Norse troll, from Proto-Germanic *truzlą, from Proto-Indo-European *dreh₂-.

Noun

troll m (plural trolls)

  1. troll (mythical being)

Etymology 2

Borrowed from English troll.

Noun

troll m (plural trolls)

  1. troll (inflammatory poster on the Internet)
  2. (by extension) the act of trolling

Further reading

German

Pronunciation
  • Audio(file)

Verb

troll

  1. singular imperative of trollen

Hungarian

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English troll.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): [ˈtrolː]
  • Hyphenation: troll
  • Rhymes: -olː

Noun

troll (plural trollok)

  1. troll (grotesque person, Internet troll)

Declension
Inflection (stem in -o-, back harmony)
singular plural
nominative troll trollok
accusative trollt trollokat
dative trollnak trolloknak
instrumental trollal trollokkal
causal-final trollért trollokért
translative trollá trollokká
terminative trollig trollokig
essive-formal trollként trollokként
essive-modal — —
inessive trollban trollokban
superessive trollon trollokon
adessive trollnál trolloknál
illative trollba trollokba
sublative trollra trollokra
allative trollhoz trollokhoz
elative trollból trollokból
delative trollról trollokról
ablative trolltól trolloktól
non-attributive
possessive - singular		 trollé trolloké
non-attributive
possessive - plural		 trolléi trollokéi
Possessive forms of troll
possessor single possession multiple possessions
1st person sing. trollom trolljaim
2nd person sing. trollod trolljaid
3rd person sing. trollja trolljai
1st person plural trollunk trolljaink
2nd person plural trollotok trolljaitok
3rd person plural trolljuk trolljaik

Derived terms
  • trollkodik

Italian

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English troll.

Noun

troll m (invariable)

  1. troll (grotesque person, Internet troll)

Derived terms

Norwegian Bokmål
troll

Etymology

From Old Norse trǫll, from Proto-Germanic *truzlą, from Proto-Indo-European *dreh₂-.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /trol/, [tɾɔl]
  • Rhymes: -ɔl

Noun

troll n (definite singular trollet, indefinite plural troll, definite plural trolla or trollene)

  1. troll (supernatural being)

Derived terms

References

Norwegian Nynorsk

Alternative forms
Dialects

Etymology

From Old Norse trǫll, from Proto-Germanic *truzlą, from Proto-Indo-European *dreh₂-.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /trolː/, [trɞ̞lː], (palatalisation) /troʎː/, [trɞ̞ʎː]

Noun

troll n (definite singular trollet, indefinite plural troll, definite plural trolla)

  1. (folklore) an evil supernatural being
    • 1856, Ivar Aasen, Norske Ordsprog [Norwegian Proverbs]:
      Dat eine Trollet skræmer inkje dat andre.
      The one troll does not scare the other.
  2. a troll (a (often large) grotesque humanoid creature that lives in the forest or the mountain)
  3. a greedy, aggressive or violent animal or person
    • 2015, Olsen (lyrics and music), “Konstabel snus”, in Makt og ære, blod og spy, performed by Faensmakt:
      Ho mora va et troll å faren yrkesmilitær
      The mother was a troll and father a professional soldier
  4. a predator
  5. the name of various diseases, previously believed to be caused by evil beings

Derived terms
  • bergtroll (“mountain-giant”)
  • elvetroll (“supernatural being in rivers”)
  • heltroll (“demon”)
  • landtroll (“someone who misses the boat”)
  • netttroll (“Internet troll”)
  • rovetroll, rumpetroll (“tadpole”)
  • skrukketroll (“woodlouse”)
  • trolla (“perform magic”)
  • trollbinde (“enchant”)
  • trollbær (“poisonous berry”)
  • trolldeig (“salt dough”)
  • trolldom (“wizardry, magic”)
  • trolldrykk (“potion”)
  • trollelt (“stalked by evil creatures, trolls”)
  • trollen m (“the devil”)
  • trollfisk (“unknown fish with strange shape”)
  • trollfugl (“bird that misleads or destroys”)
  • trollgryte (“giant’s kettle”)
  • trollkall, trollmann (“wizard”)
  • trollkjerring (“witch”)
  • trollkval (“sperm whale, Physeter macrocephalus”)
  • trollord (“spell, magic word”)
  • trollride, trollriv (“colic in animals”)
  • trollring (“magic ring”)
  • trollsmør (“bewitched butter”)
  • trollunge (“ugly, naughty child”)
  • trolløl (“unusually strong beer”)

References

Polish
trolle

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English troll.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /trɔl/
  • Audio(file)
  • Rhymes: -ɔl
  • Syllabification: troll

Noun

troll m animal

  1. (European folklore, Norse mythology) troll (grotesque humanoid creature living in caves or hills or under bridges)
  2. (colloquial, derogatory, Internet slang) troll (person who makes or posts inflammatory or insincere statements in an attempt to lure others into combative argument for purposes of personal entertainment or to manipulate their perception, especially in an online community or discussion; also, such a statement)

Declension
Declension of troll
singular plural
nominative troll trolle
genitive trolla trolli
dative trollowi trollom
accusative trolla trolle
instrumental trollem trollami
locative trollu trollach
vocative trollu trolle

Derived terms
nouns
verbs
nouns

Further reading
  • troll in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
  • troll in Polish dictionaries at PWN
  • trolle in PWN's encyclopedia
  • troll at Obserwatorium językowe Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego

Portuguese

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English troll.

Noun

troll m (plural trolls) (proscribed)

  1. Alternative spelling of trol

Derived terms

Spanish

Noun

troll m (plural trolls)

  1. Alternative spelling of trol

Swedish
ett troll i en illustration av John Bauer

Etymology

From Old Norse trǫll, from Proto-Germanic *truzlą, from Proto-Indo-European *dreh₂-.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /trɔlː/
  • Audio(file)

Noun

troll n

  1. (folklore) a troll (supernatural being)
    • 1943, Margit Holmberg (lyrics and music), “Trollmors vaggsång [Mother troll's lullaby]”:
      När trollmor har lagt sina elva små troll, och bundit fast dom i svansen, då sjunger hon sakta för [de] elva små trollen, de vackraste ord hon känner: ho aj aj aj aj buff, ho aj aj aj aj buff, ho aj aj aj aj buff, buff, ho aj aj aj aj buff.
      When mother troll has put her eleven little trolls to bed, and tied them up by their tails [tail], then she slowly sings to the eleven little trolls, the most beautiful words she knows: ho ay ay ay ay buff, ho ay ay ay ay buff, ho ay ay ay ay buff, buff, ho ay ay ay ay buff.
  2. a troll (internet troll)
    Mata inte trollen
    Don't feed the trolls

Declension
Declension of troll 
Singular Plural
Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite
Nominative troll trollet troll trollen
Genitive trolls trollets trolls trollens

Derived terms

See also

References

Yola

Etymology

From Middle English trollen, from Old French troller.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /tɾɔɫ/

Verb

troll (present participle trolleen)

  1. to roll

References
  • Jacob Poole (d. 1827) (before 1828) William Barnes, editor, A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, London: J. Russell Smith, published 1867, page 73
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