adj
Meaning 1
Situated at the rear; posterior.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: obsolete
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Standard Lemma guide
postern
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: /ˈpɒst(ə)n/
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Received-Pronunciation: /ˈpəʊst(ə)n/
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Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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General-American: /ˈpoʊstəɹn/
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General-American: /ˈpɑstəɹn/
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General-American: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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rhymes with -ɒstən
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rhymes with -əʊstən
adj
Meaning 2
Lower in quality or status; inferior, lesser.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: obsolete
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
adj
Meaning 3
Clandestine, hidden, secret; also, dishonourable, underhand.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: obsolete
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 4
A back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one, especially one that is private or not obvious.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: also, attributive
Topics: architecture
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 5
A back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one, especially one that is private or not obvious.
A hidden or secret exit or tunnel of a fortification such as a castle, city wall, or fort.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: also, attributive
Topics: architecture
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 6
A back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one, especially one that is private or not obvious.
Any way in or out of a place, especially a hidden one; an entrance or exit.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: also, attributive, broadly
Topics: architecture
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 7
A back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one, especially one that is private or not obvious.
An underground passage communicating between a main ditch and a parade, or between the ditches and the interior of the outworks.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: also, attributive, historical
Topics: architecture, government, military, politics, war
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 8
A means of escape; an escape route.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: archaic, figuratively
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 9
A dishonourable or unconventional means of doing something.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: archaic, figuratively
Examples
- Near-synonym: back door
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: back door
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 10
The back or rear part of a thing.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: figuratively, obsolete
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 11
The buttocks of a person; behind, posterior.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: figuratively, obsolete
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: 'tocks, arse, arse cheeks, ass, ass cheeks, back, backside, batty, behind, blessed assurance, booty, botty, bottom, bum, bum cheeks, buns, butt, butt cheeks, buttocks, caboose, cheeks, derriere, dicky, fanny, fourth point of contact, gluteus maximus, glutes, gooseberry-grinder, gyatt, heinie, hiney, hinderlin, hurdies, jacksie, keester, keister, moon, moneymaker, nates, nether cheeks, patootie, peach, posterior, postern, rear, rear end, rump, seat, sit upon, tail, toches, tush, tushie
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 12
a small gate in the rear of a fort or castle
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: gate
History
Etymology
The noun is derived from Middle English postern, posterne (“side door or gate; small entranceway; hidden or secret door or passage”), from Late Latin posterna, and from its likely etymon Anglo-Norman posterne and Old French posterne (“hidden exit from a fortified building; back door; small door”) (modern French poterne), a variant of posterle (“back door or passage”) (although this is attested later), possibly also influenced by Latin externus (“external, outward”) and internus (“internal, inward”). Posterle is from Late Latin posterla, posterula (“(small) back door, gate, or way”), from Latin posterus (“coming after, later, next”) (from post (“after; behind”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pós (“afterwards; at, by”)) + -ula (suffix denoting an instrument). The adjective is from an attributive use of the noun.
Across languages
Translations
32 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Bulgarian: заден вход (zaden vhod) — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Catalan: poterna — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Dutch: achterdeur — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Dutch: achterpoort — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Dutch: zijingang — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Dutch: zijdeur — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Finnish: sivuovi — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Finnish: takaovi — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Finnish: takaportti — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- French: poterne — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- German: Hintertür — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- German: Hintertor — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Italian: postierla — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Italian: pusterla — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Italian: porta secondaria — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Middle English: posterne — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Polish: poterna — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Polish: potajnik — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Portuguese: poterna — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Russian: за́дняя дверь (zádnjaja dverʹ) — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Serbo-Croatian: stražnji ulaz — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Spanish: poterna — back door or gate, side entrance, or other entrance distinct from the main one
- Finnish: poterni — hidden or secret exit or tunnel of a fortification
- Finnish: salainen tunneli — hidden or secret exit or tunnel of a fortification
- Finnish: salainen uloskäynti — hidden or secret exit or tunnel of a fortification
- Middle English: posterne — hidden or secret exit or tunnel of a fortification
- Finnish: poterni — underground passage communicating between a main ditch and a parade, or between the ditches and the interior of the outworks
- Polish: poterna — underground passage communicating between a main ditch and a parade, or between the ditches and the interior of the outworks
- Polish: potajnik — underground passage communicating between a main ditch and a parade, or between the ditches and the interior of the outworks
- Finnish: petollinen keino — dishonourable or unconventional means of doing something
- Finnish: salakavala keino — dishonourable or unconventional means of doing something
- Finnish: vilpillinen keino — dishonourable or unconventional means of doing something