The story
- German · calque ofHungerstein
- English todayhunger stone
Calque of German Hungerstein, from Hunger (“hunger”) + Stein (“rock, stone”).
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Today it means: A stone, either naturally exposed or intentionally embedded in a river during a drought, which is dated and often inscribed to mark the water level as a warning to future generations that they may face famine if the water reaches that low level again. Such stones are common in Central Europe. Full definition →
Calque of German Hungerstein, from Hunger (“hunger”) + Stein (“rock, stone”).
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.