eben

Adjective

eben (comparative more eben, superlative most eben)

1. Pronunciation spelling of even, representing African-American English.

Adverb

eben (comparative more eben, superlative most eben)

1. Pronunciation spelling of even, representing African-American English.

Anagrams

• Bene, NEbE, been, bene, neeb

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin ebenus. Doublet of banús.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central) [ˈe.βən]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [ˈe.bən]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [ˈe.ben]

Noun

eben m (plural ébens)

1. ebony (tree, wood, color)

   Synonym: banús

Further reading

• “eben” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “eben”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025.
• “eben” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “eben” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Etymology

From Latin ebenus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈɛbɛn]
• Hyphenation: eben

Noun

eben m inan

1. ebony (tree, wood, color)

Further reading

• “eben”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
• “eben”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989
• “eben” in Akademický slovník současné češtiny, 2012–2025, slovnikcestiny.cz
• “eben”, in Internetová jazyková příručka (in Czech), 2008–2025

Alternative forms

• ebent (dialectal)

Etymology

The adjective is from Middle High German eben, from Old High German eban, the adverb from ebano; from Proto-West Germanic *ebn, from Proto-Germanic *ebnaz and its adverb equivalent. Cognate with Low German even, Dutch even, effen, English even, Danish jævn.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /eːbən/, [ˈeːbən], [ˈeːbm̩]
• (nonstandard) IPA^(key): /ˈeːbənt/, [ˈeː(b)m̩t]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -eːbən

Adjective

eben (strong nominative masculine singular ebener or ebner, comparative ebener or ebner, superlative am ebensten)

1. flat, smooth, even (of a surface)

Adverb

eben

1. (modal particle) so, just, simply, indicating that something is generally known, or cannot be changed, or the like; often untranslatable

   Synonym: halt

   Er ist eben ein Idiot...

   So he's an idiot...

   Dann müssen wir eben härter arbeiten.

   Then we'll just have to work harder.

2. (modal particle) just, quickly, indicating that something is done fast or without much complication

   Synonym: kurz

   Ich geh mal eben zur Theke.

   I'll just go to the bar.

   Könnten Sie mir vielleicht eben helfen?

   Could you maybe help me out really quickly?

3. just; a moment ago

   Wo ist denn dein Mann? Der saß doch eben noch hier.

   Where's your husband? He was sitting here just a minute ago.

4. (literary, with dieser) exactly, very

   Synonym: genau

   Es sollte eben diese Entscheidung sein, die ihn in den Bankrott treiben würde.

   It would be this very decision that drove him into bankruptcy.

Further reading

• “eben (flach, glatt)” in Duden online
• “eben (genau, gerade)” in Duden online
• “eben (soeben, vorhin, schnell)” in Duden online
• “eben” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache

Etymology

eb (“dog”) +‎ -en (“on”)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈɛbɛn]
• Hyphenation: eben

Noun

eben

1. superessive singular of eb

Etymology

Borrowed from French ébène, from Latin ebenus.

Noun

eben n (uncountable)

1. ebony

Noun

eben

1. second-person singular possessive of ebe