gnu

Abbreviation of English Gnau.

gnu

1. (international standards) ISO 639-3 language code for Gnau.

• Wiktionary’s coverage of Gnau terms

From Dutch gnoe, from Khoekhoe ǃnu:, of unknown origin, likely onomatopoeic of the grunt-type noise of the gnu.

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /njuː/
• (UK) IPA^(key): /njuː/, /ɡəˈnuː/^[1], /ɡəˈnjuː/^[1]

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (US) IPA^(key): /nuː/, /njuː/
• Homophones: new, nu, knew, GNU (UK)
• Rhymes: -uː

gnu (plural gnus or gnu)

1. A large antelope of the genus Connochaetes, native to Africa, having curved horns.

   Synonym: wildebeest

• Pronunciation with initial /ɡ/ popularized as a joke, in particular through the song “The Gnu”.^[2][3]

• gnu goat

• GNU

• gnu on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• “gnu”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

• Ung, gun, NGU, Gun, UNG, nug, Ngu, NGu

From German Gnu, from Afrikaans ghnoe, from Khoekhoe !nu:.

• IPA^(key): /ɡnuː/, [ɡ̊nuːˀ]

gnu c (singular definite gnuen, plural indefinite gnuer)

1. gnu, wildebeest

• “gnu” in Den Danske Ordbog

• gnuu

Borrowed from German Gnu, from Khoekhoe !nu:.

• IPA^(key): /ˈɡnu(ː)/, [ˈɡnu(ː)]
• Rhymes: -u
• Syllabification^(key): gnu
• Hyphenation^(key): gnu

gnu

1. gnu, wildebeest (either of the two species of antelope in the genus Connochaetes)

   Hyponyms: juovagnu, valkohäntägnu

Borrowed from French gnou, from Khoekhoe ǃnu:, likely onomatopoeic in origin.

• IPA^(key): ^*/ˈɲu/^*[1]
• Rhymes: -u
• Hyphenation: gnù

gnu m (invariable)

1. gnu
2. wildebeest, kokoon

• gnu azzurro
• gnu dalla coda bianca
• gnu nero
• gnu striato

• gnu in Collins Italian-English Dictionary
• gnu in Aldo Gabrielli, Grandi Dizionario Italiano (Hoepli)
• gnu in garzantilinguistica.it – Garzanti Linguistica, De Agostini Scuola Spa
• gnu in Dizionario Italiano Olivetti, Olivetti Media Communication
• gnu in sapere.it – De Agostini Editore
• gnu in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana

From an African language, via German Gnu.

gnu m (definite singular gnuen, indefinite plural gnuer, definite plural gnuene)

1. a gnu or wildebeest (large antelope)

• “gnu” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

From German Gnu, from Afrikaans ghnoe. Ultimately Khoekhoe.

gnu m (definite singular gnuen, indefinite plural gnuar, definite plural gnuane)

1. a gnu or wildebeest (large antelope)

From Old Norse gnúa. Cognate with Icelandic núa.

gnu (present tense gnur, past tense gnudde, past participle gnutt/gnudd, passive infinitive gnuast, present participle gnuande, imperative gnu)

1. (transitive) to rub hard
2. (transitive) to compress, crush
3. (intransitive) to work hard and evenly
4. (intransitive) to nag

• “gnu” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

• ung

Borrowed from German Gnu.

• IPA^(key): /ˈɡnu/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -u
• Syllabification: gnu

gnu n or f (indeclinable)

1. gnu, wildebeest (any antelope of the genus Connochaetes)

   Synonym: antylopa gnu

• “gnu”, in Wielki słownik języka polskiego‎^[2] (in Polish), Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• “gnu”, in Polish dictionaries at PWN‎^[3] (in Polish)

Borrowed from French gnou.^[1][2]

• Rhymes: -u
• Hyphenation: gnu

gnu m (plural gnus)

1. gnu

• “gnu”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026

Borrowed from French gnou.

gnu m (uncountable)

1. gnu, wildebeest

Inherited from Proto-Berber *ăgnəβ (“to sew”). Cognate with Central Atlas Tamazight ⴳⵏⵓ (gnu, “to sew”), Northern Saharan Berber, Nefusa, Tachawit, and Tarifit gni (“to sew”).

• IPA^(key): /ɡnu/

gnu (intensive aorist gnnu, verbal noun tigni, Tifinagh spelling ⴳⵏⵓ, Arabic spelling ڭنو)

1. to sew, to mend, to be sewn

   تڭُنا اس ينّاس السّروال. ― tgʷna yas innas ssrwal. ― His mother sewed his pants.

• Stroomer, Harry (2025), Dictionnaire berbère tachelḥiyt-français — Tome 2 f—l (Handbook of Oriental Studies – Handbuch der Orientalistik; 188/2) (in French), Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, →DOI, →ISBN, page 929b