West Germanic

American  

noun

1. a subbranch of Germanic that includes English, Frisian, Flemish, Dutch, Plattdeutsch, Yiddish, and German. WGmc, W. Gmc.

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adjective

1. of or relating to this subbranch of Germanic.

West Germanic British  

noun

1. a subbranch of the Germanic languages that consists of English, Frisian, Dutch, Flemish, Afrikaans, Low German, German, Yiddish, and their associated dialects

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Etymology

Origin of West Germanic

First recorded in 1890–95

Example Sentences

In the Roman West, Germanic peoples became both allies and enemies of the Roman state.

From Textbooks • Apr. 19, 2023

To translate her into English is to excavate linguistic strata: Panska reads like a Japonic parody of Nordic syntax translated into a West Germanic language.

From New York Times • Mar. 1, 2022

After that trip to the Certosa he discontinued all Lombard studies, and, it is said, actually withdrew from publication a scathing article in which the West Germanic contingent were handled according to their deserts.

From The Collectors by Mather, Frank Jewett

North Germanic or Scandinavian, West Germanic or Low and High German, and East Germanic, of which the only important representative is Gothic.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 6 "English Language" to "Epsom Salts" by Various

Indeed we might say that to-day the English and German forms resemble each other more than does either set the West Germanic prototypes from which each is independently derived.

From Language An Introduction to the Study of Speech by Sapir, Edward