paar

See also: Paar, påår, and Påår

English

Noun

paar (plural paars)

1. (geology) A hypothesized shifting of four geologic blocks: northeast Africa west of Red Sea and north of the Ethiopian valley, the Arabian Peninsula, the Sinai Peninsula, and the Horn of Africa east of the rift valleys, which is used to explain the structural features of the area.
   • 1976, AAPG Bulletin, volume 60, numbers 1-6, American Association of Petroleum Geologists, page 410:

     By the end of early Eocene time a paar developed between Africa and Arabia which caused tensional forces in the southern Red Sea area (Swartz and Arden, 1960).

References

• Christopher Morris (1992) Academic Press Dictionary of Science and Technology

Afrikaans

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [pɑːɾ]

Etymology 1

From Dutch paar.

Noun

paar (plural pare)

1. pair

Etymology 2

From Dutch paren.

Verb

paar (present paar, present participle parende, past participle gepaar)

1. to pair, to couple

References

• 2007. The UCLA Phonetics Lab Archive. Los Angeles, CA: UCLA Department of Linguistics.

Dutch

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /paːr/
• Rhymes: -aːr

• audio

  (file)

Etymology 1

From Middle Dutch paer, from Latin par.

Noun

paar n (plural paren, diminutive paartje n)

1. pair, couple
2. a few, a couple, some

   Hier hebben ze een paar van die batterijen.

   They have some of those batteries here.

Derived terms

• paarvorming

Descendants

• Negerhollands: paer, paar
  • →? Virgin Islands Creole: pa (dated, possibly from Spanish)
• → Caribbean Javanese: par
• → Sranan Tongo: par
  • → Saramaccan: páa

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

paar

1. inflection of paren:
   1. first-person singular present indicative
   2. imperative

Anagrams

• raap

Estonian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pˈɑːr/

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Middle Low German pâr, from Latin pār.

Noun

paar (genitive paari, partitive paari)

1. pair (two similar or identical things taken together)
2. couple (two partners)

Declension

Declension of paar (ÕS type 22e/riik, length gradation)
		singular	plural
nominative		paar	paarid
accusative	nom.
	gen.	paari
genitive			paaride
partitive		paari	paare paarisid
illative		paari paarisse	paaridesse paaresse
inessive		paaris	paarides paares
elative		paarist	paaridest paarest
allative		paarile	paaridele paarele
adessive		paaril	paaridel paarel
ablative		paarilt	paaridelt paarelt
translative		paariks	paarideks paareks
terminative		paarini	paarideni
essive		paarina	paaridena
abessive		paarita	paarideta
comitative		paariga	paaridega

Derived terms

• abielupaar

Pronoun

paar (genitive paari, partitive paari)

1. a couple (of) (two or a few)

Declension

Declension of paar (ÕS type 22e/riik, length gradation)
		singular	plural
nominative		paar	paarid
accusative	nom.
	gen.	paari
genitive			paaride
partitive		paari	paare paarisid
illative		paari paarisse	paaridesse paaresse
inessive		paaris	paarides paares
elative		paarist	paaridest paarest
allative		paarile	paaridele paarele
adessive		paaril	paaridel paarel
ablative		paarilt	paaridelt paarelt
translative		paariks	paarideks paareks
terminative		paarini	paarideni
essive		paarina	paaridena
abessive		paarita	paarideta
comitative		paariga	paaridega

Derived terms

• paarkümmend
• paarsada
• paarteist

 

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Russian пар (par, “steam, vapour”).

Noun

paar (genitive paaru, partitive paaru)

1. (colloquial) speed (especially of a motor vehicle)

Declension

Declension of paar (ÕS type 22e/riik, length gradation)
		singular	plural
nominative		paar	paarud
accusative	nom.
	gen.	paaru
genitive			paarude
partitive		paaru	paare paarusid
illative		paaru paarusse	paarudesse paaresse
inessive		paarus	paarudes paares
elative		paarust	paarudest paarest
allative		paarule	paarudele paarele
adessive		paarul	paarudel paarel
ablative		paarult	paarudelt paarelt
translative		paaruks	paarudeks paareks
terminative		paaruni	paarudeni
essive		paaruna	paarudena
abessive		paaruta	paarudeta
comitative		paaruga	paarudega

Further reading

• “paar”, in [PSV] Eesti keele põhisõnavara sõnastik [Dictionary of Estonian Basic Vocabulary] (in Estonian) (online version, not updated), Tallinn: Eesti Keele Sihtasutus (Estonian Language Foundation), 2014
• “paar”, in [EKSS] Eesti keele seletav sõnaraamat [Descriptive Dictionary of the Estonian Language] (in Estonian) (online version), Tallinn: Eesti Keele Sihtasutus (Estonian Language Foundation), 2009
• “paar”, in [ÕS] Eesti õigekeelsussõnaraamat ÕS 2018 [Estonian Spelling Dictionary] (in Estonian) (online version), Tallinn: Eesti Keele Sihtasutus (Estonian Language Foundation), 2018, →ISBN
• paar in Sõnaveeb (Eesti Keele Instituut)

German

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /paːr/, [paːɐ̯], [paː], [paːʁ]

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aːɐ̯, -aː

Etymology 1

From Paar (“pair, couple”).

Determiner

paar (invariable)

1. some; few; a few

Usage notes

• This determiner can be preceded by a definite article and some other determiners: Die paar Tage sind ja schnell vorbei. (“These few days will be over soon.”) Otherwise, in standard German, paar always takes the undeclined numeral ein in front of it: Nach ein paar Tagen ist das vorbei. (“After a few days it will be over.”) In colloquial German the numeral may be left out.
• Although literally meaning “pair, couple”, the word does not commonly refer to two items, but rather to sets from three upward. The upper limit is dependent both on absolute number and percentage: 10 out of 20 may be ein paar, as may 50 out of 1,000; whereas 50 out of 100 are unlikely to be so identified.

Derived terms

• paarmal

Related terms

• Paar

Etymology 2

Adjective

paar (not comparable)

1. Obsolete form of bar (“bare; cash”).

Declension

Positive forms of paar (uncomparable)

number & gender		singular			plural
		masculine	feminine	neuter
predicative		er ist paar	sie ist paar	es ist paar	sie sind paar
strong declension (without article)	nominative	paarer	paare	paares	paare
	genitive	paaren	paarer	paaren	paarer
	dative	paarem	paarer	paarem	paaren
	accusative	paaren	paare	paares	paare
weak declension (with definite article)	nominative	der paare	die paare	das paare	die paaren
	genitive	des paaren	der paaren	des paaren	der paaren
	dative	dem paaren	der paaren	dem paaren	den paaren
	accusative	den paaren	die paare	das paare	die paaren
mixed declension (with indefinite article)	nominative	ein paarer	eine paare	ein paares	(keine) paaren
	genitive	eines paaren	einer paaren	eines paaren	(keiner) paaren
	dative	einem paaren	einer paaren	einem paaren	(keinen) paaren
	accusative	einen paaren	eine paare	ein paares	(keine) paaren

Further reading

• “paar” in Duden online
• “paar” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• “paar” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon

Latvian

Verb

paar

1. inflection of paart:
   1. second/third-person singular present indicative
   2. third-person plural present indicative
   3. second-person singular imperative
2. (with the particle lai) third-person singular imperative of paart
3. (with the particle lai) third-person plural imperative of paart