Spross

== German == === Alternative forms === Sproß (pre-1996) === Etymology === Doublet of Sprosse (“rung, sprout”), which see. Middle High German sprozze was a weak masculine. The apocopated form adopted strong declension, while the fuller form became feminine. The semantic distinction between both was introduced and advocated by the grammarian Gottsched (18th c.). It remains vague, however, except insofar as the masculine form is no longer possible in the sense of “rung”. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): [ʃpʁɔs] === Noun === Spross m (strong or mixed, genitive Sprosses, plural Sprosse or Sprossen, diminutive Sprösschen n) sprout, shoot (young plant growing out of the ground; young twig growing on a plant); for outgrowths on potatoes, soybeans etc., the doublet Sprosse f is more usual Synonyms: Trieb, Schoss, Schössling, Sprössling (figurative) scion, descendant Synonym: Sprössling ==== Declension ==== === See also === Knospe f (“bud”) === Further reading === “Spross” in Duden online “Spross”, in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache‎[1] (in German)