different between dell vs combe

English

Pronunciation

• enPR: d?l, IPA^(key): /d?l/
• Rhymes: -?l

Etymology 1

From Middle English delle, del, from Old English dell (“small dale”), from Proto-Germanic *dalj? (“a hollow, abyss”), diminutive of Proto-Germanic *dal? (“valley, dale”), from Proto-Indo-European *d?ol-, *d?el- (“an arch, vaulting, curve, curvature, cavity”). Cognate with Dutch del (“a dell”), German Delle (“a hollow”).

Noun

dell (plural dells)

1. A valley, especially in the form of a natural hollow, small and deep.
   • 1794, William Blake, The Little Girl Found, lines 49-50

     To this day they dwell

     In a lonely dell.

   • 1722, Thomas Tickell, Kensington Gardens

     In dells and dales, conceal'd from human sight.

Synonyms

• dale
• dingle
• vale
• valley
• See also Thesaurus:valley

Translations

Etymology 2

Origin obscure. Originally thieves' cant. Compare Dutch del (“trollop, floozie”). This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.

Noun

dell (plural dells)

1. (obsolete) A young woman; a wench.
   • 1621, Ben Jonson, The Gypsies Metamorphosed

     Sweet doxies and dells

Derived terms

• wapping dell

References

Albanian

Etymology

From Proto-Albanian *daisl?, from Proto-Indo-European *g??iH-slo (compare Latin f?lum, Lithuanian gýsla, Serbo-Croatian ž?la).

Noun

dell m (indefinite plural dej, definite singular delli, definite plural dejt)

1. (anatomy) tendon
2. sinew

Declension

References

Maltese

Etymology

From Arabic ????? (?ill).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d?ll/

Noun

dell m (plural dellijiet)

1. shade, shadow

Manx

Verb

dell (verbal noun dellal)

1. to negotiate, deal, trade, traffic

Mutation

Middle English

Noun

dell

1. Alternative form of delle

Westrobothnian

Preposition

dell

1. Alternative form of dill

English

Alternative forms

• comb
• coomb
• coombe

Etymology

From Middle English coumbe, cumbe, from Old English cumb, from Proto-Brythonic (compare Welsh cwm), from Proto-Celtic *kumb?. Doublet of cwm.

Pronunciation

• (UK) enPR: ko?om, IPA^(key): /ku?m/
• Homophone: cwm
• Rhymes: -u?m

Noun

combe (plural combes)

1. A valley, often wooded and often with no river
   • 1914, Saki, ‘The Cobweb’, Beasts and Superbeasts:

   • 1805, Robert Southey, Madoc

2. A cirque.

Usage notes

Used, especially in South West England, in many placenames, e.g. Compton, Wycombe.

Translations

Further reading

• combe on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

French

Etymology

From Transalpine Gaulish *cumba, from Proto-Celtic *kumb?. Compare Breton komm (“river-bed”), Irish com, Welsh cwm.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /k??b/

Noun

combe f (plural combes)

1. (geography) combe (valley or hollow, often wooded and with no river)

Further reading

• “combe” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Italian

Noun

combe f

1. plural of comba

Middle English

Noun

combe

1. Alternative form of comb

Spanish

Verb

combe

1. Formal second-person singular (usted) imperative form of combar.
2. First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of combar.
3. Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of combar.
4. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted^?) present subjunctive form of combar.