national

English Online Dictionary. What means national‎? What does national mean?

English

Etymology

From Middle French national, corresponding to nation +‎ -al.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈnaʃn̩(ə)l/, /ˈnaʃn(ə)l/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈnæʃən(ə)l/, /ˈnæʃn(ə)l/
• Rhymes: -æʃənəl

Adjective

national (comparative more national, superlative most national)

1. Pertaining to a nation or country, especially as a whole; affecting, shared by, or existing throughout all of a nation. [from 16th c.]

2. Belonging to or characteristic of a specific nation or country, as opposed to others. [from 17th c.]

3. (now rare) Nationalistic; patriotic. [from 17th c.]

Usage notes

See nation for notes regarding the usage of national to refer to the UK and its member states.

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

national (plural nationals)

1. A subject of a nation.

2. (usually in the plural) A tournament in which participants from all over the nation compete.

3. (usually in the plural, journalism) A national newspaper.

Translations

Further reading

• “national”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “national”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

Anagrams

• nataloin, notalian

Danish

Etymology

From New Latin nationalis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [naɕoˈnæˀl], occasionally (to stress the opposition to international) IPA^(key): [ˈnaɕoˌnæˀl]

Adjective

national

1. national, having to do with a particular country in opposition to other nations

   Antonym: international

2. national, having to do with the whole and not only single parts of it

   Antonym: regional

3. patriotic, having positive feelings for one's own nation

Inflection

Derived terms

• international

References

• “national” in Den Danske Ordbog

French

Etymology

From nation +‎ -al; cf. New Latin nationalis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /na.sjɔ.nal/

Adjective

national (feminine nationale, masculine plural nationaux, feminine plural nationales)

1. national

Derived terms

Further reading

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

German

Etymology

Derived from Nation (“nation”) under the influence of French national.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌnatsi̯oˈnaːl/, [ˌna.tsjoˈnaːl], /ˈnatsi̯oˌnaːl/, [ˈna.tsjoˌnaːl]
• Rhymes: -aːl

Adjective

national (strong nominative masculine singular nationaler, comparative nationaler, superlative am nationalsten)

1. national (being part of a nation's identity or character)

   eine nationale Tradition ― a national tradition

   die nationale Sprache (≈ die Nationalsprache) ― the national language

   nationale Eigenarten ― national characteristics

2. national (of importance for the nation as a whole)

   nationale Belange ― national interests

   eine nationale Katastrophe ― a national catastrophe

   der nationale Dialog ― the national dialogue

3. nationwide, national (covering a country, as opposed to regional and international levels; see usage note below)

   nationale Parlamente (≈ Nationalparlamente) ― national parliaments

   auf nationaler Ebene ― on the national level

   die nationale Gesetzgebung ― national legislation

4. (moderately) nationalist

   das nationale Lager ― the nationalist camp

   Sozialismus nationaler Prägung ― socialism with a nationalist imprint

Usage notes

• The comparative forms are infrequent.
• German national in the sense of “nationwide” occurs chiefly in a political context, as shown in the examples above. Its use in other contexts is often modeled on English usage: ein nationaler Gesangswettbewerb (“a national singing competition”). The more idiomatic German word is landesweit or, in the cases of Germany and Austria specifically, bundesweit: ein landesweiter/bundesweiter Gesangswettbewerb.

Declension

Derived terms

Further reading

• “national” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• “national” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon
• “national” in Duden online