Wordwyrt

heir

/ˈeə/UH
/ˈɛɹ/ER

Meaningan heir

Common meaning: a person who inherits

Journey through time

  1. Aryan root · reconstructed√GHAR‘seize, grasp, hold, contain’No written record; from Skeat’s list of Aryan roots, no. 113, p. 734 · scan
  2. Latinhērēs, hērēdis‘an heir’
  3. Old Frenchheirsource
  4. Middle Englishheiresource
  5. Englishheir‘a person who inherits’ · today

heir also in: inheritheritagehereditary

Sources & notes

Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.

Pronunciation

  • UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
  • No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
  • US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
  • No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.

Origin: Built on Latin hērēs ‘an heir’.

Did you know: our wording, based on Lewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), entry hērēs, p. 848 · dictionary scan

Roots

Related words

hereditaryheritageinherit

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