pert

Etymology

Aphetic form of apert.

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /pɝt/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /pɜːt/
• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)t

Adjective

pert (comparative perter, superlative pertest)

1. Attractive (of a person); well-formed, shapely (of a part of the body). [from 14th c.]
2. Lively; alert and cheerful; bright. [from 16th c.]
   • 1594, William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Act 1, Scene 1:

     "Go Philostrate, Stirre vp the Athenian youth to merriments, Awake the pert and nimble spirit of mirth"

   • 2001, Donald Spoto, Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, chapter 1, 11:

     He was instantly attracted to Gladys's pert, fey humor and her good nature.

3. (now rare) Cheeky, impertinent (especially of children or social inferiors). [from 15th c.]
   • 2009, Hilary Mantel, Wolf Hall, Fourth Estate 2010, p. 333:

     "You'll not be so pert when the Cornish seize you. They spit children like you and roast them on bonfires."

4. (obsolete) Open; evident; unhidden; apert. [14th-17th c.]

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Piers Plowman to this entry?)

Verb

pert (third-person singular simple present perts, present participle perting, simple past and past participle perted)

1. (intransitive, obsolete) To behave with pertness.

Anagrams

• -pter, pret., terp

Etymology

per +‎ -t

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈpɛrt]
• Hyphenation: pert

Noun

pert

1. accusative singular of per

   pert indít ― to sue

Alternative forms

• part

Etymology

From Latin pars, partem.

Noun

pert f (plural pertes)

1. part

Etymology

From Old Dutch *pered, from Late Latin paraverēdus.

Noun

pert n

1. horse

Further reading

• “pert”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
• “pert”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, 1929

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pɛrt/

Adjective

pert (feminine singular pert, plural pert)

1. pretty, attractive
2. quaint

Mutation