oer

See also: Appendix:Variations of "oer"

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from Low German Uur, from Proto-Germanic *ōra, *ūra- (“ferriferous sand”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *(s)wūr-. However, compare Irish úir (“soil, earth”) and Proto-Germanic *auraz (“wet earth, sand, mud”).

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

oer n (uncountable, no diminutive)

1. ferrous ground, sand clotted by iron(III) oxide, bog iron ore

Synonyms

• ijzeroer

Derived terms

• oerbank

References

• Guus Kroonen, “Reflections on the o/zero-Ablaut in the Germanic Iterative Verbs”, in The Indo-European Verb: Proceedings of the Conference of the Society for Indo-European Studies, Los Angeles, 13-15 September 2010, Wiesbaden: Reichert Verlag, 2012

Middle English

Noun

oer

1. alternative form of ore (“ore”)

Welsh

Etymology

From Proto-Celtic *ougros (compare Old Irish úar), from Proto-Indo-European *h₃ewǵ- (compare Old Armenian ոյծ (oyc)).

Pronunciation

• (North Wales) IPA^(key): /oːɨ̯r/
• (South Wales, standard, colloquial) IPA^(key): /ɔi̯r/
  • (South Wales, colloquial) IPA^(key): /oːr/
• Rhymes: -oːɨ̯r

Adjective

oer (feminine singular oer, plural oerion, comparative oerach, equative oered, superlative oeraf)

1. cold

   Mae hi’n oer tu allan.

   It’s cold outside.

Derived terms

• digon oer i sythu brain (“cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey”, literally “cold enough to stiffen crows”)
• iasoer (“chilly”)
• oeri (“to cool, to get cold”)
• oerfel (“cold”)

Mutation

Mutated forms of oer

radical	soft	nasal	h-prothesis
oer	unchanged	unchanged	hoer

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Welsh.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

Further reading

• Griffiths, Bruce; Glyn Jones, Dafydd (1995), “cold”, in Geiriadur yr Academi: The Welsh Academy English–Welsh Dictionary‎^[1], Cardiff: University of Wales Press, →ISBN
• D. G. Lewis, N. Lewis, editors (2005–present), “oer”, in Gweiadur: the Welsh–English Dictionary, Gwerin
• R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke, et al., editors (1950–present), “oer”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies

West Frisian

Etymology

From Old Frisian over, from Proto-Germanic *uber.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /uə̯r/

Preposition

oer

1. over, across

   oer lân of oer see

   over land or over sea

2. about, concerning

   ynformaasje oer rinnende saken

   information concerning current events

3. on, upon

Derived terms

• oersette
• oerwurk

Further reading

• “oer (I)”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011

Yola

Preposition

oer

1. alternative form of ower
   • 1867, “ABOUT AN OLD SOW GOING TO BE KILLED”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 1, page 106:

     At skelpearès an slaugheardhès mye leeigh aar oer vill.

     That the piglings and pigs may laugh their overfill.

References

• Jacob Poole (d. 1827) (before 1828), William Barnes, editor, A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, London: J. Russell Smith, published 1867, page 60