Deer

Pronunciation

• UK IPA: /dɪə(ɹ)/
• US IPA: /diÉš/, IPA: /dɪɚ/
• Rhymes: -ɪə(ɹ)
• Homophones: dear, dir

Origin

From Middle English deere, dere, der, dier, deor ("small animal, deer"), from Old English dēor, dīor ("an animal, beast, any sort of wild animal, wild beast; deer, reindeer"), from Proto-Germanic *deuzą ("animal"), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeusóm ("living thing"), from *dʰeus ("breath"), full-grade derivative of *dʰu̯ésmi. Cognate with Scots dere, deir ("deer"), North Frisian dier ("animal, beast"), West Frisian dier ("animal, beast"), Dutch dier ("animal, beast"), German Low German Deer, Deert ("animal"), German Tier ("animal, beast"), Swedish djur ("animal, beast"), Icelandic dýr ("animal, beast"). Related also to Albanian dash ("ram"), Lithuanian daũsos ("upper air; heaven"), Lithuanian dùsti ("to sigh"), Russian душа (dušá, "breath, spirit"), Lithuanian dvėsti ("to breath, exhale"), Sanskrit ध्वंसति (dhvaṃsati, "he falls to dust"). For semantic development compare Latin animalis ("animal"), from anima ("breath, spirit").

Full definition of deer

Noun

1. (obsolete) A beast, usually a quadruped as opposed to birds, fish, etc.
2. (archaic) (Esp. in phrase small deer) Any animal, especially a mammal.But mice and rats and such small deer, have been Tom's food for seven long year. -Shakespeare, King Lear. Act III. Sc. IV.
3. (zoology) a ruminant mammal with antlers and hooves of the family Cervidae or one of several similar animals from related families of the order ArtiodactylaI wrecked my car after a deer ran across the road.
4. The meat of such an animalOh, I've never had deer before.

Hyponyms

• buck, stag male deer
• doe female deer
• fawn young deer
• hart adult deer
• venison deer meat

Derived terms

• deerfly
• deerlike
• white-tailed deer

Anagrams

• dere, de re, dree, rede, reed, Reed