Beer
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Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
beer¹
- /ˈbɪə̯/ Australia, UK
- /ˈbɪː/ British, Southern, Standard
- /ˈbɪjə/ British, Southern, Standard
- /ˈbɪə/ Australia
- /ˈbiː.ə/ Australia
- /ˈbiə̯/ New Zealand
- /ˈbɛː/
- /ˈbɪɚ/ Canadian, US, Standard
- [ˈbɪɚ] ~ [ˈbɪɹ̩] Canadian, US, Standard
- /ˈbiːɹ/ Scotland
- [ˈbiːɹ] Scotland
- /ˈbiːɾ/ Scotland
- [ˈbiːɾ] Scotland
- /bia̯(ɾ)/
- /biː(ɾ)/
Sounds like bier, bere, bare (cheer–chair merger), bear (cheer–chair merger) · Rhymes with -ɪə(ɹ)
Where it comes from
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”).
noun beers
- An alcoholic drink fermented from starch material, commonly barley malt; often with hops or some other substance (like gruit) to impart a bitter flavor. Beer is brewed all over the world.
- A fermented extract of the roots and other parts of various plants, as spruce, ginger, sassafras, etc.
- A solution produced by steeping plant materials in water or another fluid.
- A glass, bottle, or can of any of the above beverages. I bought a few beers from the shop for the party.
- A variety of the above beverages. Pilsner is one of the most commonly served beers in Europe.
Similar: ale, amber fluid, amber nectar, beer, bitter, brew, brewski, brewsky, cold one, coldie, liquid bread, oat soda
verb beers · beering · beered
- To give beer to (someone). No doubt he then can feed us, wine us, beer us, And cook us something that can warm and cheer us.
- To drink beer. In Japan, students on a Friday night announce “Let's beer!”
beer²
- /ˈbi.ɚ/ US
- /ˈbiː.ə/ UK
Where it comes from
From Middle English beere, equivalent to be + -er.
noun beers · be-er
- One who is or exists. That meant, among other things, that he was going to be a fast-moving doer. And even when he was three or four, it wasn't hard for me to know that this wasn't going to be easy. Because Albert was a beer. Born that way.
Similar: ale, amber fluid, amber nectar, beer, bitter, brew, brewski, brewsky, cold one, coldie, liquid bread, oat soda
Beer³
- /ˈbɪɚ/
Where it comes from
From Old English bearu (“grove”), from Proto-West Germanic *baru, from Proto-Germanic *barwaz (“grove”).
proper noun
- A village in East Devon district, Devon, England.
Beer⁴
Where it comes from
* As an English surname, from the place name in Devon (see Etymology 1 above); also from Old English bār (“boar”).
* As a north German and Dutch surname, from beer (“bear”). See also the surnames Baer and Bahr.
* As an Alemannic German surname, spelling variant of Bier (“beer”).
proper noun
- A surname.
