austrian

austrian — adjective

1. connected with Austria, the country in central Europe, or with the people, langu

1.adjectiveA2
Definition

connected with Austria, the country in central Europe, or with the people, language, food, or culture that come from there.

Example

Citlali tasted her first Austrian pastry at a small bakery in Vienna.

Austrian + noun (food/cultural item)

The Austrian Alps were covered in deep snow when the Watanabe family arrived in January.

Austrian + proper-noun place name

Common collocations
  • Austrian wine
  • Austrian Alps
  • Austrian border
  • Austrian government
  • Austrian-born

Grammar Patterns

Austrian + noun

Usage Note

Always written with a capital letter, like other adjectives made from country names. Often appears directly before a noun (Austrian wine, Austrian border) rather than after the verb 'be'.

Common Mistakes

My grandmother is austrian.
My grandmother is Austrian.
adjectives from country names always start with a capital letter.
He speaks Austrian at home.
He speaks German at home; he is from Austria.
there is no language called 'Austrian'; the main language of Austria is German.

austrian — noun

Word family

  • Austria
    nounA1

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

These words all describe things connected with the German-speaking heart of Europe, but they cover different sizes of area. 'Austrian' covers the whole country of Austria — its people, food, money, government, and borders. 'Viennese' is much narrower: it points to the capital city, Vienna, and is often used for things like coffee houses, waltzes, and architecture from that one city. 'Tyrolean' is also narrow, but it points to the alpine region of Tyrol and is used for the traditional hats, music, and costumes of that area. 'German-speaking' is broader and refers to language, not nationality — it includes Austria, Germany, parts of Switzerland, and other places. Compare: 'an Austrian passport' (the country), 'a Viennese café' (the city), 'a Tyrolean folk dance' (the region).

Austrian ↗VienneseTyroleanGerman-speaking

Common collocations

Nouns

  • Austrian citizen
  • Austrian passport
  • Austrian wine
  • Austrian Empire
  • Austrian government

Phrases

  • of Austrian origin
  • an Austrian by birth
  • the Austrian people

Prepositions

  • from Austria
  • of Austrian descent
  • in Austrian territory

Etymology

Old High GermanMedieval LatinEnglish

The word comes from 'Austria', the Latin name for the country, plus the ending '-an', which English uses to form adjectives meaning 'connected with' or nouns meaning 'a person from' (as in American, Italian, Mexican). The Latin name 'Austria' itself goes back to the Old High German word 'ostarrichi', meaning roughly 'eastern realm', because the territory lay on the eastern edge of the early German-speaking lands. English borrowed the form 'Austrian' from the late 1500s onward as contact with central Europe grew through trade, diplomacy, and royal marriages.