letzte

Meaning

last

Hyphenated as

letz‧te

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈlɛt͡stə/

Etymology

From Middle High German lest, a contraction of lezzest, from Old High German lezzist (also lazzōst), itself superlative of laz (cognate to English late). The modern German form with -tz- is of northern origin; two separate origins have probably met in it: Firstly, there is a general tendency in some Central German dialects of inserting -t- before comparative and superlative endings. (Compare for this, for example, Ripuarian fröh → fröhter, fröhtste). Secondly, Middle Low German lest, contracted superlative of lat (“late”), had a regular or regularized variant letst, which is very rare in writing, but may have been more common in spoken dialects. (Compare modern German Low German lättst.) Related forms are Dutch laatst and lest, English latest and last, Luxembourgish lescht, Hunsrik letst.

Sentences

Dies ist der letzte Aufruf für Passagier Meier , schallte es aus dem Lautsprecher .

This is the last call for Passenger Meier, it sounded from the speaker.

Auf dem Friedhof Plagwitz in Leipzig fand er seine letzte Ruhestätte.

He found his final resting place in the Plagwitz cemetery in Leipzig.