er

1 of 5

interjection

ˈə 

usually with prolonged vowel

ˈä 

nonstandard

ˈər 

—used to express hesitation

Er

2 of 5

symbol

erbium

ER

3 of 5

abbreviation

1

earned run

2

emergency room

-er

4 of 5

adjective suffix or adverb suffix

—used to form the comparative degree of adjectives and adverbs of one syllable

hotter

drier

and of some adjectives and adverbs of two or more syllables

completer

beautifuller

-er

5 of 5

noun suffix

variants or less commonly -ier or -yer

1

a

: person occupationally connected with

furrier

lawyer

b

: person or thing belonging to or associated with

header

old-timer

c

: native of : resident of

cottager

New Yorker

d

: one that has

three-decker

e

: one that produces or yields

porker

2

a

: one that does or performs (a specified action)

batter

—sometimes added to both elements of a compound

builder-upper

b

: one that is a suitable object of (a specified action)

broiler

3

: one that is

foreigner

—in all senses -yer in a few words after w, -ier in a few other words, otherwise -er

Examples of er in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Interjection

All that accelerated when internet companies eager to get people to tap their phones to lose — er, wager — $100 or $1,000 or more. —New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 22 Dec. 2024

The always wonderful Nicholas Hoult, who won me over in The Great, should knock it out of the park as arch-villain Lex Luthor, boss of Lexcorp—er, Luthorcorp. —Erik Kain, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2024

But thanks to an astrological reader, a Christmas miracle (er, misfire?) strikes and leaves the family waking up in each other's bodies on the most important day of their lives. —Kelsie Gibson, People.com, 7 Dec. 2024

Bottle pee–er Dwayne Johnson, who voices the boisterous South Pacific super-human Maui in Moana 2, logged two movies in the top five over the weekend; his Amazon MGM Christmas-on-creatine action flick, Red One, came in a distant fourth with $18.7 million in North American receipts. —Chris Lee, Vulture, 2 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective suffix or adverb suffix

Middle English -er, -ere, -re, from Old English -ra (in adjectives), -or (in adverbs); akin to Old High German -iro, adjective comparative suffix, Latin -ior, Greek -iōn

Noun suffix

Middle English -er, -ere, -ier, -iere; partly from Old English -ere (from Latin -arius); partly from Old French -ier, -iere, from Latin -arius, -aria, -arium -ary; partly from Anglo-French -ere, from Latin -ator -or — more at -ary, -or

First Known Use

Interjection

1862, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

-er

1 of 2 adjective suffix or adverb suffix

ər;

 after some vowels, often  r;

 after  ŋ,

 usually  gər

—used to form the comparative degree of adjectives and adverbs of one syllable

hotter

drier

and of some adjectives and adverbs of two or more syllables

completer

beautifuller

-er

2 of 2 noun suffix

ər;

 after some vowels, often  r

variants also -ier

ē-ər,

yər

or -yer

yər

1

a

: person connected with a particular job or occupation

furrier

lawyer

b

: person or thing belonging to or associated with

old-timer

c

: native of

New Yorker

: resident of

cottager

d

: one that has

double-decker

e

: one that produces or yields

porker

2

a

: one that does or performs (a specified action)

reporter

b

: one that is a suitable object of (a specified action)

broiler

3

: one that is

foreigner

Etymology

Adjective suffix or adverb suffix

Old English -ra (adjective suffix) or Old English -or (adverb suffix)

Noun suffix

derived from Old English -ere and Latin -arius (both noun suffixes)

Medical Definition

Er

1 of 2 symbol

erbium

ER

2 of 2 abbreviation

1

emergency room

2

extended-release