Dog name guide

Grete

The meaning, background and naming story of Grete.

Letters
5
Syllables
1Dictionary reading
Starts with
G

Meaning and background

The story behind Grete

Grete is a short form of Margaret found in German, Danish and Norwegian naming traditions. It shares Margaret's distant Greek name history but is not an independent German word meaning 'pearl'. In German the first vowel is long and the final e is voiced. The distinction from English Greta is small on paper but can matter in speech, especially if someone wants to keep the continental pronunciation.

Origin
German, Danish and Norwegian short form of Margaret. Source
Pronunciation
German /ˈɡʁeː.tə/ (approximately GREH-tuh, with a long first vowel). Source

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About Grete

Recorded as a dog’s name

Grete appears in 3 dog licence records in the 2016 New York City dataset.

How to read this count

These records cover New York City and may count the same dog in more than one licence period. They are not a national popularity ranking.

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Pronunciation and rhythm

/ɡɹit/

US English sound sequence, converted from the CMU dictionary. Stress marks are shown separately.

Stress on the first syllable in the recorded US readings.

View dictionary notation

/ɡɹit/ · primary stress on syllable 1
G R IY1 T

These are US dictionary readings. Personal, regional and other language pronunciations may differ.

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Sources and research notes (2)
  • New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene NYC Dog Licensing Dataset — all seven available extract years, retrieved 24 October 2026 — Recorded name spellings in NYC licence-period rows, extract years 2016–2018, 2022–2024 and 2026. Evidence selects one stated year per name. Annual snapshots overlap; never sum them as unique dogs. No national popularity, etymology or owner naming-intent claim.
  • Carnegie Mellon University / CMU Sphinx maintainers CMU US English Pronouncing Dictionary — US English dictionary readings; not owner-specific or exhaustive multilingual pronunciation

References support the individual facts shown. A source link does not mean the entire profile has been verified.

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