Urgestein
German, noun/ˈuːɐ̯ɡəˌʃtaɪ̯n/
Urgestein is spelled U-R-G-E-S-T-E-I-N (9 letters) and appears about once in every 1 million words in written German, the 43,786th most frequent German word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Urgestein is a German neuter noun meaning “primary rock, such as granite, gneiss, etc” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The German Wiktionary defines it as “erdgeschichtlich meist ältere Tiefengesteine und Gesteine, die unter hohem Druck und hoher Temperatur…”.
What does Urgestein mean in English?
noun
- 1
datedneuterprimary rock, such as granite, gneiss, etc.
- 2
neuteran institution in a company or organization, a founding father, a veteran, etc.
ein politisches Urgestein
Source: English Wiktionary, German section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How German dictionaries define it
noun: 1. erdgeschichtlich meist ältere Tiefengesteine und Gesteine, die unter hohem Druck und hoher Temperatur entstanden (Metamorphit) 2. bedeutender Vertreter einer politischen oder künstlerischen Richtung; jemand, der schon sehr lange in einem Unternehmen tätig ist
The definition in the German Wiktionary, in German.
Source: German Wiktionary, dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of Urgestein
- Urgesteines genitive
- Urgesteins genitive
- Urgesteine plural
- Urgesteinen dative definite plural
Source: English Wiktionary and German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce Urgestein?
- /ˈuːɐ̯ɡəˌʃtaɪ̯n/
- [ˈuːɐ̯ɡəʃtaɪ̯n]
Sources: English Wiktionary, German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
How common is Urgestein in German?
Urgestein appears about once in every 1 million words in written German.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).