Bulle

Bulle

1. A municipality, the capital of Gruyère district, Fribourg canton, Switzerland.
2. A commune in Doubs department, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France.

• IPA^(key): /ˈbʊlə/

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Via German Low German from Middle Low German bulle. Cognate with Dutch bul. More at bull.

Bulle m (weak, genitive Bullen, plural Bullen)

1. bull (male cattle)
2. (figurative) bull (strong or stout man)

• Though generally interchangeable with Stier, only Bulle is commonly used in agricultural contexts in northern and central Germany. The word is less frequent in the South.

• Stier

• bullig

Documented since the 19th century. Probably from Polizist (or an abbreviation thereof), whose first syllable may in some dialects have become homophonous to Bulle (“bull”). Another possibility is a derivation from Puller or Landpuller, a non-derogatory term for a policeman of the 18th century.

Bulle m (weak, genitive Bullen, plural Bullen)

1. (mildly derogatory) police officer, cop, pig

• The word is only mildly pejorative in colloquial speech; it is nevertheless punishable in Germany to use it in the presence of a police officer on duty.

• Bullenschwein
• Bullette (female form; humorous)
• Bullerei
• guter Bulle, böser Bulle

From Middle High German bulle, from Medieval Latin bulla (“seal capsule”, literally “ball, bullet”).

Bulle f (genitive Bulle, plural Bullen)

1. bull (papal decree)

• “Bulle” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• “Bulle, Stier, Polizeibeamter” in Duden online
• “Bulle, Siegelkapsel, Urkunde” in Duden online

From Old Frisian *bula, from Proto-Germanic *bulô. More at bull.

Bulle m

1. (zoology) bull; steer