different between national vs nationality

English

Etymology

From Middle French national, corresponding to nation +? -al.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /?na?n?(?)l/, /?na?n(?)l/
• (US) IPA^(key): /?næ??n(?)l/, /?næ?n(?)l/

Adjective

national (comparative more national, superlative most national)

1. Pertaining to a nation or country, especially as a whole; affecting, shared by, or existing throughout all of a nation. [from 16th c.]
2. Belonging to or characteristic of a specific nation or country, as opposed to others. [from 17th c.]
3. (now rare) Nationalistic; patriotic. [from 17th c.]
   • 1791, James Boswell, Life of Johnson, Oxford 2008, p. 599:

     ‘Come, come, don't deny it: they are really national. Why, now, the Adams are as liberal-minded men as any in the world: but, I don't know how it is, all their workmen are Scotch.’

Usage notes

See nation for notes regarding the usage of national to refer to the UK and its member states.

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

national (plural nationals)

1. A subject of a nation.

   The diplomats were advised not to interact with any foreign nationals except on official duty.

2. (usually in the plural) A tournament in which participants from all over the nation compete.

   After winning the regional tournament, the team advanced to the nationals.

Translations

Further reading

• national in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• national in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

Anagrams

• nataloin, notalian

Danish

Etymology

From New Latin nationalis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [na?o?næ?l], occasionally (to stress the opposition to international) IPA^(key): [?na?o?næ?l]

Adjective

national

1. national, having to do with a particular country in opposition to other nations

   Antonym: international

2. national, having to do with the whole and not only single parts of it

   Antonym: regional

3. patriotic, having positive feelings for one's own nation

Inflection

Derived terms

• international

References

• “national” in Den Danske Ordbog

French

Etymology

nation +? -al; cf. New Latin nationalis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /na.sj?.nal/

Adjective

national (feminine singular nationale, masculine plural nationaux, feminine plural nationales)

1. national

Derived terms

Further reading

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

German

Etymology

Derived from Nation (“nation”) under the influence of French national.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?natsi?o?na?l/, [?na.tsjo?na?l], /?natsi?o?na?l/, [?na.tsjo?na?l]
• Rhymes: -a?l

Adjective

national (comparative nationaler, superlative am nationalsten)

1. national (being part of the national identity)

2. national (of importance for, or to the benefit of the nation as a whole)

3. nationwide, national (covering a country, as opposed to regional and international levels; see usage note below)

4. (moderately) nationalist

Usage notes

• The comparative forms are infrequent.
• German national in the sense of “nationwide” occurs chiefly in a political context, as shown in the examples above. Its use in other contexts is most often modeled on English usage: ein nationaler Gesangswettbewerb — a national singing competition. The more idiomatic German word is landesweit: ein landesweiter Gesangswettbewerb.

Declension

Derived terms

• Nationalismus
• Nationalität
• Nationalfeiertag
• Nationalmannschaft
• Nationalmeisterschaft
• Nationalsozialismus
• Nationalspieler

Further reading

• “national” in Duden online

English

Etymology

From national +? -ity, perhaps after French nationalité; ultimately from Latin n?tio (“nation, people”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?næ.???næ.l?.ti/, /?næ?.?næ.l?.ti/, /-?næ.l?.ti/, /-?næl.ti/
• Hyphenation: na?tion?al?i?ty, na?tion?al?ity

Noun

nationality (plural nationalities)

1. (now rare) National, i.e. ethnic and/or cultural, character or identity. [from 17th c.]
2. (now rare) Nationalism or patriotism. [from 18th c.]
   • 1791, James Boswell, Life of Johnson, Oxford 2008, p. 599:

     ‘You are, to be sure, wonderfully free from that nationality: but so it happens, that you employ the only Scotch shoe-black in London.’

3. National origin or identity; legal membership of a particular nation or state, by origin, birth, naturalization, ownership, allegiance or otherwise. [from 18th c.]

4. A people sharing a common origin, culture and/or language, and possibly constituting a nation-state. [from 19th c.]
5. (obsolete) Political existence, independence or unity as a national entity. [19th c.]

Synonyms

• (membership of a nation or state): affiliation, allegiance, ancestry, citizenship, descent, enfranchisement, ethnicity, national status, naturalization, origin, parentage, race, residence, status
• (national character or identity): ancestry, color, colour, ethnicity, identity, origin
• (a people): clan, confederation, cultural group, culture, denomination, ethnic group, ethnicity, faith, group, nation, people, persuasion, race, sect, tribe
• (political existence as a national entity): autarchy, autonomy, freedom, independence, liberty, nationhood, self-determination, self-government, self-rule, separation, sovereignty
• (nationalism): nationalism, patriotic sentiment, patriotism,

Related terms

• nation, national, nationalise, nationalism, nationalist, nationalistic, nationalize
• nationhood
• nation-state
• nationwide

Translations

See also

• naturalize