Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

Beer

Beer

,
Noun.
[OE.
beor
,
ber
, AS.
beór
; akin to Fries.
biar
, Icel.
bj[GREEK]rr
, OHG.
bior
, D. & G.
bier
, and possibly E.
brew
. √93, See
Brew
.]
1.
A fermented liquor made from any malted grain, but commonly from barley malt, with hops or some other substance to impart a bitter flavor.
☞ Beer has different names, as
small beer
,
ale
,
porter
,
brown stout
,
lager beer
, according to its strength, or other qualities. See
Ale
.
2.
A fermented extract of the roots and other parts of various plants, as spruce, ginger, sassafras, etc.
Small beer
,
weak beer
; (
fig.
)
insignificant matters.
“To suckle fools, and chronicle small beer.”
Shak.

Webster 1828 Edition

Beer

BEER

,
Noun.
1.
A spirituous liquor made from any farinaceous grain; but generally from barley, which is first malted and ground, and its fermentable substance extracted by hot water. This extract or infusion is evaporated by boiling in caldrons, and hops or some other plant of an agreeable bitterness added. The liquor is then suffered to ferment in vats. Beer is of different degrees of strength, and is denominated small beer, ale, porter, brown stout, &c.,according to its strength, or other peculiar qualities.
2.
Beer is a name given in America to fermenting liquors made of various other materials; and when a decoction of the roots of plants forms a part of the composition, it is called spring-beer, from the season in which it is made.

Definition 2024

Beer

Beer

See also: beer, béer, and be-er

German

Noun

Beer

  1. Obsolete form of Beere.

beer

beer

See also: Beer, béer, and be-er

English

A glass of beer

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /bɪə(ɹ)/
  • (UK) IPA(key): /bɪə/
  • (US) IPA(key): /biːɹ/, /biəɹ/
  • (near–square merger) IPA(key): /bɛə/
  • Rhymes: -ɪə(r)
  • Homophone: bier

Noun

beer ‎(countable and uncountable, plural beers)

  1. (uncountable) An alcoholic drink fermented from starch material commonly barley malt, often with hops or some other substance to impart a bitter flavor.
    Beer is brewed all over the world.‎
    • 1922, Ben Travers, chapter 1, in A Cuckoo in the Nest:
      “[…] the awfully hearty sort of Christmas cards that people do send to other people that they don't know at all well. You know. The kind that have mottoes like
        Here's rattling good luck and roaring good cheer, / With lashings of food and great hogsheads of beer. […]”
  2. (uncountable) A fermented extract of the roots and other parts of various plants, as spruce, ginger, sassafras, etc.
  3. (uncountable) A solution produced by steeping plant materials in water or another fluid.
  4. (countable) A glass, bottle, or can of any of the above beverages.
    I bought a few beers from the shop for the party.‎
    Can I buy you a beer?‎
    I'd like two beers and a glass of white wine.‎
  5. (countable) A variety of the above beverages.
    Amstel is one of the most commonly sold beers in Europe.‎
    I haven't tried this beer before.‎
Synonyms
  • See also Wikisaurus:beer
Derived terms

Look at pages starting with beer.

Translations

Descendants

Verb

beer ‎(third-person singular simple present beers, present participle beering, simple past and past participle beered)

  1. (rare, transitive) To give beer to (someone)
    • Sidney Daryl, His First Brief. A Comedietta in 1870, Clement Scott, Drawing-room Plays and Parlour Pantomimes, Robson and Sons, pages 303–304:
      No doubt he then can feed us, wine us, beer us, And cook us something that can warm and cheer us.
    • 2010, Steve Brezenhoff, The Absolute Value of -1, Carolrhoda Lab, page 121:
      “Beer me!” said Goody. “Also your weed is ****. Where’s the good stuff, dude?”
    • 2013, Janet E. Cameron, Cinnamon Toast and the End of the World, Hatchette Books Ireland, page 124:
      I heard Patty Marsh yelling, ‘Beer him, Eleanor!’
    • 2013, R. D. Power, Forbidden, page 39:
      “Beer me!” To his astonishment she obeyed his command, appearing a minute later with a glass of beer and a wry smile.

Etymology 2

From Middle English beere, equivalent to be +‎ -er.

Pronunciation

Noun

beer ‎(plural beers)

  1. One who is or exists.
    • 1990, Budge Wilson, “Be-ers and Doers”, in The leaving, and other stories:
      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.
Derived terms

Anagrams

Afrikaans

Etymology

From Dutch beer.

Noun

beer ‎(plural bere, diminutive beertjie)

  1. bear

Dutch

Pronunciation

  • Rhymes: -eːr
  • IPA(key): /beːr/

Etymology 1

From Old Dutch *bero, from Proto-Germanic *berô. Compare West Frisian bear, English bear, German Bär, Danish bjørn.

Noun

beer m ‎(plural beren, diminutive beertje n)

  1. bear (large predatory mammal of the family Ursidae)
  2. (figuratively) person who is physically impressive and/or crude
    Wat een beer van een vent daar voorin, he?
    What a bear of a guy there in front, huh?
  3. (student slang) debt, credit
Derived terms

Etymology 2

Dutch: a 'beer' or 'steunbeer'

From Old Dutch *bēr, from Proto-Germanic *bairaz. Cognate with English boar.

Noun

beer m ‎(plural beren, diminutive beertje n)

  1. boar (male swine).
  2. A protective external construction, notably against ice or supporting the weight of the main building.
Derived terms

Etymology 3

Noun

beer m ‎(plural beren, diminutive beertje n)

  1. liquid manure (excrement gathered in a pit to fertilize)
Derived terms

References

  • M. J. Koenen & J. Endepols, Verklarend Handwoordenboek der Nederlandse Taal (tevens Vreemde-woordentolk), Groningen, Wolters-Noordhoff, 1969 (26th edition) [Dutch dictionary in Dutch]

Latin

Verb

beer

  1. first-person singular present passive subjunctive of beō

Limburgish

Etymology

Related to English beer.

Noun

beer n

  1. beer
  2. any alcoholic drink

Inflection

Inflection
Root singular Root plural Diminutive singular Diminutive plural
Nominative beer bere beerke beerkes
Genitive beers bere beerkes beerkes
Locative baer baere baerke baerkes
Dative* baerem baerer baeremske baeremskes
Accusative* beer berer beerke beerkes
  • The dative and accusative are obsolete nowadays, the nominative is used instead.

Old French

Alternative forms

Etymology

Vulgar Latin *badō ‎(“I am open”).

Verb

beer

  1. (transitive) to open
  2. (intransitive) to open
  3. (chiefly) to pant; to breathe heavily
  4. (figuratively) to desire; to lust for

Conjugation

This verb conjugates as a first-group verb ending in -er. This verb has irregularities in its conjugation. Old French conjugation varies significantly by date and by region. The following conjugation should be treated as a guide.

    Conjugation of beer (see also Appendix:Old French verbs)
simple compound
infinitive beer avoir beé
gerund en beant Use the gerund of avoir followed by the past participle
present participle beant
past participle beé
person singular plural
first second third first second third
indicative jo tu il nos vos il
simple
tenses		 present be bees bee beons beez beent
imperfect beoie, beeie, beoe, beeve beoies, beeies, beoes, beeves beoit, beeit, beot, beeve beïiens, beïens beïiez, beïez beoient, beeient, beoent, beevent
preterite beai beas bea beames beastes beerent
future beerai beeras beera beerons beeroiz, beereiz, beerez beeront
conditional beeroie, beereie beeroies, beereies beeroit, beereit beeriiens, beeriens beeriiez, beeriez beeroient, beereient
compound
tenses		 present perfect Use the present tense of avoir followed by the past participle
pluperfect Use the imperfect tense of avoir followed by the past participle
past anterior Use the preterite tense of avoir followed by the past participle
future perfect Use the future tense of avoir followed by the past participle
conditional perfect Use the conditional tense of avoir followed by the past participle
subjunctive que jo que tu qu’il que nos que vos qu’il
simple
tenses		 present be bez bet beons beez beent
imperfect beasse beasses beast beïssons, beïssiens beïssoiz, beïssez, beïssiez beassent
compound
tenses		 past Use the present subjunctive of avoir followed by the past participle
pluperfect Use the imperfect subjunctive of avoir followed by the past participle
imperative – tu – nos vos –
— bee — beons beez —

Descendants

References

  • (fr) Godefroy, Frédéric, Dictionnaire de l'ancienne langue française et de tous ses dialectes du IXe au XVe siècle (1881) (beer)

Etymology

From Middle English bere, from Old English bēor ‎(“beer”), from Proto-Germanic *beuzą ‎(“beer”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰews-, *bews- ‎(“dross, sediment, brewer's yeast”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Bjoor ‎(“beer”), West Frisian bier ‎(“beer”), German Low German Beer ‎(“beer”), Dutch bier ‎(“beer”), German Bier ‎(“beer”), Icelandic bjór ‎(“beer”), Swedish buska ‎(“freshly brewed beer, new beer”), bira ‎(“beer”), Middle Dutch & Middle Low German būsen ‎(“to feast, booze, drink heavily”), Middle High German būs ‎(“a swelling”). Non-Germanic cognates include probably Albanian mbush ‎(“to fill, stuff”).

Similar Results