adv
Meaning 1
At an earlier time.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: not-comparable, obsolete
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Standard Lemma guide
ere
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
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Received-Pronunciation: /ɛə/
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Received-Pronunciation: /ɛː/
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UK: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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General-American: /ɛɚ/
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Australian: /eː/
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New-Zealand: /eə/ without the cheer–chair merger
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/iə/ New Zealand, cheer–chair merger
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Scotland: /eɹ/
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/ɜː(ɹ)/ Lancashire, fair–fur merger
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rhymes with -ɛə(ɹ)
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homophone: air
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homophone: Ayr
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homophone: eyre
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homophone: heir
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homophone: are (“unit of measurement”)
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homophone: e'er (US)
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homophone: ear (cheer–chair merger)
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homophone: err (fair–fur merger)
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/eːɹə/
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/ɪə(ɹ)/
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CMU ARPABET: EH1 R Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
conj
Meaning 2
before.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: archaic, poetic
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
contraction
Meaning 3
A contraction of is, there, and the indefinite article. Mainly used in questions.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: Ireland, contraction, informal
Examples
- 'Ere bit o' bacon in it, Kathleen?
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
name
Meaning 4
A language spoken on Manus Island in Papua New Guinea.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 5
Obsolete form of ear.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: alt-of, obsolete
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 6
Initialism of extended regular expression.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
Topics: computing, engineering, mathematics, natural-sciences, physical-sciences, sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
prep
Meaning 7
Before; sooner than.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: archaic, poetic
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
History
Etymology
From Middle English er, from Old English ǣr (adverb, conjunction, and preposition), from Proto-West Germanic *airi, from Proto-Germanic *airiz, comparative of Proto-Germanic *airi (“early”), from Proto-Indo-European *h2éyeri (“day, morning”) (compare Avestan 𐬀𐬫𐬀𐬭 (ayar, “day”), Gk. ἠέριος (ēérios, “at daybreak”), see also era, Albanian herët (“early in the morning, at daybreak”) ). The adverb erstwhile retains the Old English superlative ǣrest (“earliest”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian eer (“before”), Dutch eer (“before, sooner than”), German ehe (“before”).
Formed from is + there + a/an.
Across languages
Translations
19 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Arabic: قَبْل (qabl) — before, sooner than
- Arabic: أْبْكَر (ʔbkar) — before, sooner than
- Arabic: قبل ما (ʔabl ma) — before, sooner than
- Bulgarian: преди (predi) — before, sooner than
- Czech: před — before, sooner than
- Czech: předtím než — before, sooner than
- Czech: dříve než — before, sooner than
- Dutch: eer — before, sooner than
- Finnish: ennen — before, sooner than
- French: avant — before, sooner than
- German: vor — before, sooner than
- Italian: prima — before, sooner than
- Italian: dinanzi — before, sooner than
- Polish: zanim — before, sooner than
- Portuguese: antes — before, sooner than
- Russian: до́ (dó) — before, sooner than
- Russian: пе́ред (péred) — before, sooner than
- Russian: пре́жде чем (préžde čem) — before, sooner than
- Spanish: antes — before, sooner than