aigle

French

Etymology

Inherited from Middle French aigle, from Old French aigle, itself either borrowed from Old Occitan aigla or taken from Latin aquila, though not as a popular term. Cf. the Old French and regional form aille, which may be popularly inherited.

• Cognate with Italian aquila, Portuguese águia, Spanish águila. Doublet of eagle.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɛɡl/

• audio

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Noun

aigle m (plural aigles)

1. eagle (any of a number of species of birds of prey)
2. (figurative) a man of ingenuity and superior talent; a genius

Usage notes

• The term aigle doesn't have a one-to-one translation between French and English. Some species known as eagles in English are known as pygargues in French.

Derived terms

• aigle des steppes
• aigle impérial
• aigle royal
• aiglon
• nez en bec d’aigle
• nid d’aigle

 

Noun

aigle f (plural aigles)

1. a female eagle
2. (heraldry) a representation an eagle; the eagle as a heraldic symbol

Further reading

• “aigle”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Anagrams

• agile, gelai

Middle French

Etymology

From Old French aigle.

Noun

aigle f (plural aigles)

1. eagle

Descendants

• French: aigle

Old French

Etymology

Either borrowed from Old Occitan aigla or taken from Latin aquila. Cf. the variant form aille, which may be popularly inherited.

Noun

aigle m (oblique plural aigles, nominative singular aigles, nominative plural aigle)

1. eagle (animal)

Descendants

• → English: eagle
  • → French: eagle
• Middle French: aigle
  • French: aigle
• Norman: aiglle, aigl'ye

Scots

Etymology

From Middle English egle, from Anglo-Norman egle, from Old French aigle, from Latin aquila.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈeɡl/

Noun

aigle (plural aigles)

1. eagle

References

• “aigle, n.” in the Dictionary of the Scots Language, Edinburgh: Scottish Language Dictionaries.