hunger stone
noun/ˈhʌŋɡə ˌstəʊn/UK/ˈhʌŋɡɚ ˌstoʊn/US
Etymology
Calque of German Hungerstein, from Hunger (“hunger”) + Stein (“rock, stone”).
- derived from Hungerstein
Definitions
A stone, either naturally exposed or intentionally embedded in a river during a drought,…
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.
- If there were a "hunger stone" in the Fox river like the one in the Elbe, it would now be showing its unwelcome face above the waters—which is equivalent to saying that the water level, and power correspondingly, is very low indeed.
- Being here in Frankfurt reminds me of this region's famous »Hungersteine«, or hunger stones, as the Main River boatmen used to call the rocks that became visible when the water level was low.
The neighborhood
Vish — recursive loop
No curated loop yet for hunger stone. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.
sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA