gherkin

Meaning

Noun

1. A small cucumber, often pickled whole.
2. (Ireland, UK) Pickled cucumber regardless of size; a pickle
3. (slang) The penis.

Name

Alternative letter-case form of Gherkin.

Synonyms

pickle

cucumber

🥒

pickled gherkin

West Indian gherkin

Cucumis anguria

west indian gherkin

bur gherkin

cucumber in vinegar

cornichon

cuke

Translations

cornichon

augurk

cetriolino

Gewürzgurke

Salzgurke

pepinillo

Essiggurke

Gurke

🥒

saure Gurke

Pfeffergurke

pepino em conserva

concombre

🥒

αγγουράκι

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈɡɝkɪn/

Etymology

Cognate with Polish: ogórek

In summary

From a form of Dutch gurk, an archaic variant of augurk (“small pickled cucumber”), from Low German, from Middle Low German agurke, augurke, probably via Slavic (compare Polish ogórek), from Byzantine Greek ἀγγούριον (angoúrion, “cucumber”). The underlying Dutch form may be a diminutive (gurkijn) or perhaps more probably the plural (gurken), which was then associated with the English suffix -kin (itself incidentally from Dutch or Low German). Compare German Gurke.