Etymology

Of East Central German dialectal origin, first attested in the 19th century. Probably related to Middle Low German and Middle Dutch teve (13th c., modern Dutch teef), Old English tife, all meaning “female dog, bitch”.

Given the geographical range (chiefly outside the original Old High German territory), the semantic variation (which may imply foreignness), and the comparatively very late attestation of the High German form, a secondarily adapted borrowing from Low German should be considered alternatively to inheritedness, although dialectal distribution shows that the word is without doubt significantly older than the 19th century.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtsɪbə/