eller

English

Noun

eller (plural ellers)

1. Obsolete form of alder.

Danish

Alternative forms

• ell. (abbreviation)

Etymology

From Old Danish ællær, from Old Norse ella, ellar, from Proto-Germanic *aljaz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂élyos.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛlər/, /ˈɛlɐ/, [ˈelɐ], [ˈelɒ̽]

Conjunction

eller

1. or

   At være eller ikke være.

   To be or not to be.

2. nor

   Han sagde hverken ja eller nej.

   He said neither yes nor no.

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From Old Norse ella, ellar, from Proto-Germanic *aljaz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂élyos.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Conjunction

eller

1. or

   Hun er litt rar, eller hva? ― She's a bit odd, or what?

   Knask eller knep? ― Trick or treat?

   Jeg veit ikke om han er dum eller frekk. ― I don't know if he's stupid or rude.

   Organisasjonen er usikker på om det er en god idé eller ikke. ― The organisation is unsure as to whether it's a good idea or not.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Old Norse ella, ellar, from Proto-Germanic *aljaz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂élyos.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛlːər/

Conjunction

eller

1. or

References

• “eller” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Swedish

Alternative forms

• elr, lr (text messaging)
• l. (lexicography)

Etymology

From Old Swedish ælla, ællar, from Old Norse ella, ellar, from Proto-Germanic *aljaz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂élyos.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛlɛr/, [ˈɛlːɛ̠r]

• Audio:

  (file)

Conjunction

eller

1. or

   att vara eller inte vara

   to be or not to be

   • 1974, Lasse Tennander, “Ska vi gå hem till dig [Shall We Go to Your Place ["home to you" – idiomatic]]”, in Allting som ni gör kan jag göra bättre [Anything You Do, I Can Do Better [a cover album]]‎^[1], performed by Magnus Uggla:

     Ska vi gå hem till dig eller hem till mig, eller var och en hem till sitt? Ska vi göra som dom andra och ägna oss åt varandra, eller ska var och en sköta sitt?

     Shall we go to your place ["home to you" – idiomatic] or to my place [home to me], or each one ["each and one" – idiomatic] home to theirs [nominalized – neuter gender is used when there is no concrete referent, like in impersonal constructions and here, as a rule of thumb]? Shall we do like the others and spend time on each other [engage in each other as an activity – doesn't have the connotations of "devote"], or shall each one mind [take care of] theirs [nominalized]?

2. nor

   Han sade varken ja eller nej

   He said neither yes nor no

Phrase

eller

1. or what?

   Skämtade hon eller?

   Was she joking or what?

   Ska du med eller?

   Are you joining or what?

   Är du go eller?

   Are you a swell guy or what? (regional, stereotypical phrase, Göteborg)

Derived terms

• eller hur

References

• eller in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• eller in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• eller in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)
• eller in Elof Hellquist, Svensk etymologisk ordbok (1st ed., 1922)

Anagrams

• reell