deer

See also: Deer

English

A deer (1)

Etymology

From Middle English deere, dere, der, dier, deor (“small animal, deer”), from Old English dēor, dīor (“an animal, beast, any sort of wild animal, wild beast; deer, reindeer”), from Proto-Germanic *deuzą (“animal”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰewsóm (“living thing”), from *dʰéws (“breath”), full-grade derivative of *dʰwés-. Cognate with Scots dere, deir (“deer”), North Frisian dier (“animal, beast”), West Frisian dier (“animal, beast”), Dutch dier (“animal, beast”), German Low German Deer, Deert (“animal”), German Tier (“animal, beast”), Swedish djur (“animal, beast”), Icelandic dýr (“animal, beast”). Related also to Albanian dash (“ram”), Lithuanian daũsos (“upper air; heaven”), Lithuanian dùsti (“to sigh”), Russian душа́ (dušá, “breath, spirit”), Lithuanian dvėsti (“to breath, exhale”), Sanskrit ध्वंसति (dhvaṃsati, “he falls to dust”). For semantic development compare Latin animālis (“animal”), from anima (“breath, spirit”).

Pronunciation

Noun

deer (plural deer or (nonstandard) deers)

  1. A ruminant mammal with antlers and hooves of the family Cervidae, or one of several similar animals from related families of the order Artiodactyla.
  2. (in particular) One of the smaller animals of this family, distinguished from a moose or elk.
    I wrecked my car after a deer ran across the road.
  3. The meat of such an animal; venison.
    Oh, I've never had deer before.
  4. (obsolete, except in the phrase "small deer") An animal, especially a quadrupedal mammal, as opposed to a bird, fish, etc.
    • 1606 : William Shakespeare, King Lear, Act III. IV
      But mice and rats and such small deer, have been Tom's food for seven long year.

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Translations

Anagrams

Dutch

Pronunciation

  • Audio(file)
  • Rhymes: -eːr

Verb

deer

  1. first-person singular present indicative of deren
  2. imperative of deren

Hunsrik

Alternative forms

  • tëyer (Portuguese based orthography)

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈteːɐ/

Etymology 1

From Old High German ir. Compare Luxembourgish dir.

Pronoun

deer

  1. you (plural)

Inflection

Pronoun

deer

  1. stressed dative of du.

Inflection

Further reading

Limburgish

Etymology

From Middle Dutch dier, from Old Dutch *dior, from Proto-Germanic *deuzą.

Noun

deer n

  1. pet
  2. (obsolete) beast, animal

Inflection

Inflection
Root singular Root plural Diminutive singular Diminutive plural
Nominative deer deer deerke deerkes
Genitive deers deer deerkes deerkes
Locative daer daer daerke daerkes
Dative* daerem daerer ? ?
Accusative* deer ? deerke deerkes
  • The dative and accusative are obsolete nowadays; use the nominative instead.

Saterland Frisian

Etymology

From Old Frisian dēr, thēr, from Proto-Germanic *þar. More at there.

Adverb

deer

  1. there
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