Mare

Pronunciation

• British IPA: /mɛə/
• US IPA: /ˈmÉ›(É™)ɹ/
• Homophones: mayor in many dialects

From Middle English mare, mere, from Old English mere, miere ("female horse, mare"), from Proto-Germanic *marhijō ("female horse"), from Proto-Indo-European *mark-, *marḱ- ("horse"). Cognate with Scots mere, meir, mear ("mare"), North Frisian mar ("mare, horse"), West Frisian merje ("mare"), Dutch merrie ("mare"), German Mähre ("mare"), Danish mær ("mare"), Swedish märr ("mare"), Icelandic meri ("mare"). Related also to Old English mearh ("male horse, steed").

Alternative etymology cites derivation via Old English mere, miere, from Proto-Germanic *marhijō (cf. Dutch merrie, German Mähre), from *marhaz ("horse") (compare Old English mearh), from Gaulish markos (compare Welsh march), from Iranian marikas (compare Old Persian marikas 'male, manly'), from maryas (compare Avestan mairya 'man; male animal'); akin to Sanskrit máryas 'young man; stallion'. More at marry.

Full definition of mare

Noun

1. An adult female horse.
• 1879, Richard Jefferies, The Amateur Poacher Chapter 1, But then I had the massive flintlock by me for protection. ¶...The linen-press and a chest on the top of it formed, however, a very good gun-carriage; and, thus mounted, aim could be taken out of the window at the old mare feeding in the meadow below by the brook,....
2. (UK, pejorative, slang) A foolish woman.
• 2007, Hester Browne, Little Lady, Big AppleThe silly mare phoned your mother, talking about applying for a mortgage, and we don't want that, do we?

Antonyms

• stallion and gelding refer to adult male horses (a colt refers to an immature one)

Coordinate terms

• (adult female horse) foal and filly refer to younger horses, pony can refer to adult horses of either gender under a certain height.

Pronunciation

• British IPA: /mɛə/
• US IPA: /ˈmÉ›(É™)ɹ/

From Middle English mare, from Old English mare ("nightmare, monster"), from Proto-Germanic *marÇ­ ("nightmare, incubus") (compare Dutch (dial.) mare, German (dial.) Mahr, Old Norse mara ( >

Danish mare, Swedish mara 'incubus, nightmare')), from Proto-Indo-European *mor- ("feminine evil spirit"). Akin to Old Irish Morrígain 'elf queen', Albanian tmerr ("horror"), Polish zmora 'nightmare', Czech mura 'nightmare, moth'.

Noun

1. (now obsolete except dialectal) A type of evil spirit thought to sit on the chest of a sleeping person; also the feeling of suffocation felt during sleep; a nightmare.
2. (UK, colloquial) (Shortening of nightmare) A nightmare; a frustrating or terrible experience.I'm having a complete mare today.

Derived terms

• daymare
• nightmare

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈmarÉ›/

From Latin mare ("sea").

Noun

1. (planetology) A dark, large circular plain; a “sea”.
2. (planetology) On Saturn's moon Titan, a large expanse of what is thought to be liquid hydrocarbons.

Anagrams

• Amer., amer., Erma, ream