Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition


Kell

Kell

,
Noun.
A kiln.
[Obs.]

Kell

,
Noun.
[A modification of
kale
.]
A sort of pottage; kale. See
Kale
, 2.
Ainsworth.

Kell

,
Noun.
[Cf.
Caul
.]
1.
The caul; that which covers or envelops as a caul; a net; a fold; a film.
[Obs.]
I’ll have him cut to the
kell
.
Beau. & Fl.
2.
The cocoon or chrysalis of an insect.
B. Jonson.

Webster 1828 Edition


Kell

KELL

,
Noun.
A sort of pottage. [Not used in America.]

KELL

,
Noun.
The caul or omentum. [See Caul, the usual orthography of the word.]
1.
The chrysalis of the caterpillar.

Definition 2024


kell

kell

English

Noun

kell (plural kells)

  1. (obsolete) The caul.
  2. (obsolete, figuratively) That which covers or envelops, like a caul; a net; a fold; a film.
    • Beaumont and Fletcher
      I'll have him cut to the kell.
  3. (obsolete) The cocoon or chrysalis of an insect.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Ben Jonson to this entry?)

Etymology 2

Noun

kell (plural kells)

  1. A kiln.

Etymology 3

A modification of kale.

Noun

kell (uncountable)

  1. A sort of pottage; kale.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Ainsworth to this entry?)


Breton

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈkɛlː/

Etymology 1

From Latin cōleus (testicle) (compare Cornish kell, Welsh caill).

Noun

kell f (plural kelloù, dual divgell)

  1. testicle

Etymology 2

From Latin cella (compare Old Irish cell).

Noun

kell f (plural kelloù or killi)

  1. cell (of prisoner, monk):

Mutation


Cornish

Pronunciation

  • (Revived Middle Cornish) IPA(key): [kɛlː]
  • (Revived Late Cornish) IPA(key): [kɛlʰ]

Etymology 1

From Latin cōleus (testicle) (compare Breton kell, Welsh caill).

Noun

kell f (dual diwgell, plural kellow or kellyow)

  1. testicle

Etymology 2

From Latin cella (compare Old Irish cell).

Noun

kell f (plural kellow or kellyow)

  1. cell

Mutation


Estonian

Etymology

From Swedish skälla.

Noun

kell (genitive kella, partitive kella)

  1. clock
  2. bell

Declension

Derived terms


Hungarian

Etymology

From Proto-Finno-Ugric *kelke- (to be necessary, need to, must, be obligatory). [1][2]

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [ˈkɛlː]

Verb

kell

  1. must, need to, have to (used to express need or having to do something)
    Ezt látnod kell. ― You have to / need to / must see it.
  2. to be needed
    'Kell nekem az a ház. ― I need that house.

Conjugation

Derived terms

References

  1. Entry #281 in Uralonet, online Uralic etymological database of the Research Institute for Linguistics, Hungarian Academy of Sciences.
  2. Gábor Zaicz, Etimológiai szótár: Magyar szavak és toldalékok eredete, Tinta Könyvkiadó, 2006, ISBN 963 7094 01 6

Maltese

Etymology

From kien (he was) + l- (to)

Verb

kellu (imperfect ikoll)

  1. he had (possession; functional past of għand)
  2. he had to (obligation (with following verb))

Inflection

Usage notes

  • The inflection of this verbal form is akin to a defective verb (in the third person singular) followed by object pronoun affixes.
When referring to possession, the inflected form is followed by a noun:
Kelli ktieb -- I had a book
When meaning "had to", each inflected form is followed by a corresponding conjugated form of the sense verb in the imperfective:
Kellna niġu -- We had to go

Related terms

See also