ear

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[edit] English

A human ear.

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Etymology 1

From Middle English ere, ȝhere, from Old English ēare (“ear”), from the voiced Verner alternant of Proto-Germanic *ausô (“ear”) (compare Scots ear, West Frisian ear, Dutch oor, German Ohr, Swedish öra), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ous- (compare Old Irish áu, Latin auris, Lithuanian ausìs, Russian ухо (úxo), Albanian vesh, Ancient Greek οὖς (oûs), Armenian ունկն (unkn), Persian گوش (guš) ).

[edit] Noun

ear (plural ears)

  1. (countable) The organ of hearing, consisting of the pinna, auditory canal, eardrum, malleus, incus, stapes and cochlea.
  2. (countable) The external part of the organ of hearing, the auricle.
  3. (countable, slang) A police informant.
    • 1976, Stirling Silliphant, Dean Riesner, Gail Morgan Hickman, The Enforcer.
      No I'm not kidding, and if you don't give it to me I'll let it out that you’re an ear.
[edit] Alternative forms
[edit] Derived terms
Terms derived from ear (noun)
[edit] Translations
organ of hearing
external part of the organ of hearing — see auricle
slang: police informant
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
Translations to be checked
  • North Alaskan Inupiatun: siun

Northwest Alaska Inupiatun: siun

[edit] See also

[edit] Etymology 2

Middle English er, from Old English ēar, from Proto-Germanic *ahaz (compare West Frisian ier, Dutch aar, German Ähre), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ék- 'sharp' (compare Latin acus 'needle; husk', Tocharian B āk 'ear, awn', Old Church Slavonic ostĭ 'wheat spike, sharp point'). More at edge.

[edit] Noun

ear (plural ears)

  1. (countable) The fruiting body of a grain plant.
    He is in the fields, harvesting ears of corn.
[edit] Synonyms
[edit] Translations
fruiting body of a grain plant

[edit] Etymology 3

Old English erian

[edit] Verb

ear (third-person singular simple present ears, present participle earing, simple past and past participle eared)

  1. (archaic) To plough.
    • 1595, William Shakespeare, Richard II
      That power I have, discharge; and let them go
      To ear the land that hath some hope to grow,
      For I have none.
[edit] Translations
archaic: to plough

[edit] Anagrams

[edit] Old English

[edit] Etymology 1

Akin to Old Norse aur

[edit] Noun

ēar m.

  1. sea
  2. earth

[edit] Etymology 2

Proto-Germanic *ahaz, whence also Old High German ahir (German Ähre), Old Saxon ahar (Dutch aar), Old Norse ax. From a Proto-Indo-European root *ak ('pointed'); compare Latin acus "needle"

[edit] Noun

ēar n.

  1. ear (of corn)

[edit] Scottish Gaelic

[edit] Noun

ear f.

  1. east

[edit] Antonyms

[edit] Derived terms

[edit] West Frisian

[edit] Noun

ear n.

  1. ear
Retrieved from "http://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=ear&oldid=16246335"
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