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Glite Dictionary
Brenner Pass

Brenner Pass

1 7.4
A mountain road through the Alps that links Innsbruck in Austria with Bolzano in Italy
  • proper noun
translation icon : Paso Brenner
  • During the summer months, the Brenner Pass attracts numerous tourists exploring the Alps.

Examples

  • On his way to South Tyrol, Eichmann actually encountered a group of Jews on their way to Palestine, along the Brenner Pass.

    Academic text (2011)

  • The Brenner Pass is a key route for travelers moving between Austria and Italy.

  • Many historical events occurred at the Brenner Pass due to its strategic location.

Surface Forms

Brenner Pass main

Morphology

Brenner + pass

The headword is a named place where the noun 'pass' clearly denotes a traversable low point between peaks, so a learner who knows 'pass' can infer this is a specific mountain crossing called Brenner. They may not know the historical or geographic specifics of 'Brenner', but the compositional pattern (proper name + pass) is transparent and common cross-linguistically.

Etymology

The name Brenner Pass comes from a low gap in the Alps called a pass, a natural opening that people, animals, and carts used to travel through to cross the mountains. Because it was the easiest 'route' between what is now Austria and Italy for trade and armies for centuries, the name now means an important way to cross the mountains.