Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Sere
{
Sear
,Sere
(sēr)
, } Adj.
[OE. ]
seer
, AS. seár
(assumed) fr. seárian
to wither; akin to D. zoor
dry, LG. soor
, OHG. sorēn
to wither, Gr. αὕειν
to parch, to dry, Skr. çush
(for sush
) to dry, to wither, Zend hush
to dry. √152. Cf. Austere
, Sorrel
, Adj.
Dry; withered; no longer green; – applied to leaves.
Milton.
I have lived long enough; my way of life
Is fall’n into the
Is fall’n into the
sear
, the yellow leaf. Shakespeare
Sere
,Adj.
Dry; withered. Same as
Sear
. But with its sound it shook the sails
That were so thin and
That were so thin and
sere
. Coleridge.
Sere
,Noun.
[F.
serre
.] Claw; talon.
[Obs.]
Chapman.
Webster 1828 Edition
Sere
SERE
,Adj.
SERE
,Noun.
Definition 2024
sere
sere
English
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈsɪə/
- (US) IPA(key): /siːr/
- Homophone: seer (UK)
- Homophone: sear (US)
Adjective
sere (comparative serer, superlative serest)
- Without moisture.
- 1798, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, part 5:
- The roaring wind! it roar'd far off,
It did not come anear;
But with its sound it shook the sails
That were so thin and sere.
- The roaring wind! it roar'd far off,
- 1868, Henry Lonsdale, The Worthies of Cumberland, volume concerning Sir J. R. G. Graham, chapter 1, page 1:
- …whilst the recitation of Border Minstrelsy, or a well-sung ballad, served to revive the sere and yellow leaf of age by their refreshing memories of the pleasurable past.
- 1984, Vernor Vinge, The Peace War, chapter 37:
- The grass was sere and golden, the dirt beneath white and gravelly.
- 1798, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, part 5:
Translations
without moisture
Noun
sere (plural seres)
- An intermediate stage in an ecosystem prior to advancing to the point of being a climax community.
Synonyms
- seral community
Etymology 2
From Middle English sere, ser, from Old Norse sér (“for oneself, separately”, dative reflexive pronoun, literally “to oneself”), from Old Norse sik, from Proto-Germanic *sek (“oneself”). Cognate with Scots seir. Compare Icelandic sig, German sich, Latin se.
Alternative forms
Adjective
sere (comparative more sere, superlative most sere)
- (now rare, archaic, dialectal) set apart; separate; individual; different; diverse; several; many
- 1815, Roger Ascham, The English Works. A New Ed - Page 133:
- Therefore I have seen good shooters which would have for every bow a sere case, made of woollen cloth, and then you may put three or four of them, so cased, into a leather case if you will.
- 1912, Eliakim Littell, Robert S. Littell, The Living Age - Volume 274 - Page 153:
- Thou wert wellnee moidered' wi' me, I know, but it thou'd telled me, Mary, I mun do better or else we mun goo our sere-ways,' belike I should a done better. I'm nobbut a mon, Mary, a lundy day-tale mon. Thou might a glen me that much [...]
- 1999, Richard Beadle, Pamela M. King, York Mystery Plays: A Selection in Modern Spelling - Page 104:
- Behold now sir, and thou shalt see Sere kingdoms and sere country; All this will I give to thee For evermore, And thou fall and honour me As I said ere.
- 1815, Roger Ascham, The English Works. A New Ed - Page 133:
Derived terms
Etymology 3
Noun
sere (plural seres)
See also
Anagrams
Friulian
Etymology
From Latin sēra, from sērō (“at a late hour, late”), from sērus (“late”). Compare Italian sera, Venetian séra, Romansch saira, seira, Romanian seară, French soir.
Noun
sere f (plural seris)
Derived terms
Italian
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [ˈseː.re], /ˈsere/
- Hyphenation: sé‧re
Noun
sere f
- plural of sera
Anagrams
Latin
Etymology 1
Form of the verb serō (“I sow or plant”).
Verb
sere
- second-person singular present active imperative of serō
Etymology 2
Form of the verb serō (“I join or weave”).
Verb
sere
- second-person singular present active imperative of serō
Etymology 3
Form of sērus.
Adjective
sēre
- vocative masculine singular of sērus