English Explanatory Dictionary

beer

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. An alcoholic drink fermented from starch material, commonly barley malt; often with hops or some other substance (like gruit) to impart a bitter flavor.
  2. A fermented extract of the roots and other parts of various plants, as spruce, ginger, sassafras, etc.
  3. A solution produced by steeping plant materials in water or another fluid.
  4. A glass, bottle, or can of any of the above beverages.
  5. A variety of the above beverages.
verb
  1. To give beer to (someone).
  2. To drink beer.
noun
  1. One who is or exists.
name
  1. A village in East Devon district, Devon, England.
name
  1. A surname.

Pronunciation

/ˈbɪə/ [ˈbɪə] En-uk-beer.ogg en-au-beer.ogg /ˈbiə/ [ˈbiə] /ˈbɛː/ [ˈbɛː] /ˈbɪɚ/ [ˈbɪɚ] ~ [ˈbɪɹ̩] en-us-beer.ogg /ˈbi(ː)ɹ/ [ˈbi(ː)ɹ] /bia̯(ɾ)/ /biː(ɾ)/ /ˈbi.ɚ/ /ˈbiː.ə/

Word forms

beer beers beering beered be-er

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *beuzą Proto-West Germanic *beuʀ Old English bēor Middle English ber English beer From Middle English ber, bere, from Old English bēor (“beer”) (Oxford OED notes: "rare, except in poetry"), from Proto-West Germanic *beuʀ, from Proto-Germanic *beuzą (“beer”) (putatively from Proto-Indo-European *bʰewsóm), meaning “brewer's yeast”. However, also see the "beer" entry on EtymOnline (q.v.), which links a connection to monastic Vulgar Latin *biber (“a drink, beverage”), from Latin bibere (“to drink”). Samuel Johnson in his famous 18th-century A Dictionary of the English Language guessed it was from (unattested) Welsh *bîr; he distinguished it in his time from ale — the ancient usual word — by beer being older-aged and/or smaller. Cognate with Saterland Frisian Bjoor (“beer”), West Frisian bier (“beer”), Dutch bier (“beer”), German Low German Beer (“beer”), German Bier (“beer”), dialectal Swedish bjor, bör (“beer”), Norwegian Nynorsk bjor (“beer”), Faroese bjór (“beer”), Icelandic bjór (“beer”).

Synonyms

ale amber fluid amber nectar beer bitter brew brewski brewsky cold one coldie liquid bread oat soda reeb suds tinnie wobbly pop

Related words

gage half jug middie pint pitcher pony pot schooner barrel bottle can cask keg :Category:Beer

Derived words

all foam and no beer barley beer beauty is in the eye of the beer holder beerage beeraholic beeramid beer and pretzels game beer and skittles beer baby beer bar beer baron beer bash beer-bellied beer belly beer bike beer blast beer bong beer bottle beer bread beer bug beer-bust beer-butt chicken beer can beer-can chicken beer cellar beer cheese beer clock beer coaster beer darts beer die beered-up beeregar beer engine beerfest beer flight beer frame beer fridge beerful beer garden beergarita Beergate beer glass beer-glass beer goggles beer-gut beer gut beer hall beer hand beer hat beerhead beer helmet beerhound beerhouse beerily beerish beerita beer knot beer league beer leaguer beerless
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