Krebs

See also: krebs and krebs'

English[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

(surname): Creps

Etymology[edit]

As a German, Alemannic German, and occasionally Danish surname, from the noun Krebs (“crab”).

Proper noun[edit]

Krebs (countable and uncountable, plural Krebs or Krebses)

(countable) A surname from German.
A city in Oklahoma, United States

Derived terms[edit]

Krebs cycle

Anagrams[edit]

Berks, Berks., Kerbs, berks, breks, kerbs

German[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Middle High German krebz, krebez, krebeze, from Old High German crebiz, krebiz, from Proto-West Germanic *krabit, from Proto-Germanic *krabitaz, from Proto-Indo-European *gerbʰ- (“to scratch”), see also Old Prussian gīrbin (“number”), Old Church Slavonic жрѣбии (žrěbii, “lot, tallymark”), Ancient Greek γράφειν (gráphein, “to scratch, etch”), Dutch kreeft.

The sense “cancer” is a semantic loan from Latin cancer. By metathesis from Ancient Greek καρκίνος (karkínos, “crab”); applied to cancerous tumors because the enlarged veins resembled the legs of a crab.

Pronunciation[edit]

IPA^(key): /kʁeːps/ (standard)
IPA^(key): /kʁɛps/ (regionally, chiefly western German)
Audio (file)
Audio (file)

Noun[edit]

Krebs m (strong, genitive Krebses, plural Krebse)

Declension[edit]

Declension of Krebs [masculine, strong]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	ein	der	Krebs	die	Krebse
genitive	eines	des	Krebses	der	Krebse
dative	einem	dem	Krebs, Krebse¹	den	Krebsen
accusative	einen	den	Krebs	die	Krebse