Guten Tag! Welcome to another edition of German untranslatable words, dedicated to teaching you quirky German words, their meanings, and how to use them!
Today the word is der Nagelmond.
![Der Mond geht auf - 31.03.2010](https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2723/4484531304_2e31b35d59.jpg)
Photo: alnitak2009 on flickr.com under CC BY 2.0
What does Nagelmond literally translate to? The German compound noun Nagelmond is made up of the words der Nagel (nail) + der Mond (moon). It therefore literally translates to ‘nail moon’.
What does Nagelmond mean? This is a beautiful word because it gives a rather poetic name to a body part you’ve probably never even noticed before. A Nagelmond is the whitish part at the base of your nail, where your cuticle is. It is called a ‘nail moon’ because of its moon-like shape. Although you might never have noticed before, when you look closely you’ll see your Nagelmond really does look like the top of a moon poking its head out from your cuticle!
![Dry cuticles](https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2394/2063499990_6bf716d2f7.jpg)
Photo: epak on flickr.com under CC BY 2.0
How would you use Nagelmond in a sentence?
Ich habe keine Nagelmonde – bin ich krank??
I don’t have any nail moons – am I ill??
What is the nearest English equivalent to Nagelmond?
There is actually an English translation for Nagelmond – although I’d never heard of it until now, and I have never heard it used anywhere before! This little moon-shaped part of your nail cuticle is called the lunula in English. What does lunula mean? It means ‘little moon’ in Latin. So there is a connection, after all!
Who says German can’t be pretty? I think this word is lovely! What do you think of it? 🙂
Related vocabulary:
Nail – der Nagel
Cuticle – die Nagelhaut
Skin – die Haut
Hangnail – der Niednagel
Hand – die Hand
Finger – der Finger
Manicure – die Maniküre
Pedicure – die Pediküre
Nail polish – der Nagellack
Plaster – das Pflaster
If you liked this post, then be sure to check out some other ‘untranslatable German words’ here on the blog. Here are a few to get you started: die Schnapsidee, der Kulturbeutel, die Gemütlichkeit, die Nervensäge, der Kaffeeklatsch.
Bis bald!
Constanze x
Comments:
Joseph T. Madawela:
I THINK it is lovely and smart!
Lawrence:
Is Nagelmond a word used in day to day German / Bavarian or is it a sleeping word like the English/ Latin word you mention ” Lunula ” ? – iether way it’s cute 😉
( there’s a little play on words there if you can spot it !!?)
Lawrence x