erf

English

Alternative forms

  • airf

Pronunciation

  • Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)f

Etymology 1

From Middle English erve, erfe, from Old English yrfe, ierfe (“heritage, bequest, inheritance, property, inherited property, property that passes to an heir, cattle, livestock”), from Proto-Germanic *arbiją (“heritage”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₃erbʰ- (“to change ownership”) (from which also *h₃órbʰos (“orphan”)). Cognate with Dutch erf (“inheritance, patrimony, ground, courtyard”), German Erbe (“heritage, legacy, inheritance”), Danish arv (“heritage, inheritance”), Swedish arv (“heritage, inheritance”), Gothic 𐌰𐍂𐌱𐌹 (arbi, “inheritance”), Latin orbus (“orphan”), Ancient Greek ὀρφανός (orphanós, “orphan”), Old English ierfa (“heir”). Related to orf.

Noun

erf (plural erfs)

  1. (Northern England, Scotland, rare) Inheritance; patrimony.
    Son, you will have this farm to erf.
  2. (by extension) Stock; cattle.
Derived terms

References

Etymology 2

From Dutch erf (“patrimony, ground”), related to English erf above.

Noun

erf (plural erfs or erven)

  1. (US regional, Cape Colony, New York, South Africa) A small inherited house-and-garden lot in a village or settlement.

Etymology 3

Abbreviation.

Noun

erf

  1. (mathematics) error function

Anagrams

Dutch

Pronunciation

  • Audio(file)

Etymology 1

From Middle Dutch erve, from Old Dutch ervi, from Proto-Germanic *arbiją.

Noun

erf n (plural erven, diminutive erfje n)

  1. yard

Etymology 2

See etymology on the main entry.

Verb

erf

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

Middle English

Noun

erf

  1. Alternative form of erve
This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.