bere

See also: Appendix:Variations of "bere"

Languages (20)

English

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Afrikaans • Akan • Bambara • Basque • Chichewa • Czech • Italian • Latin • Middle Dutch • Middle English • Norwegian Nynorsk • Old English • Old High German • Romanian • Saterland Frisian • Scots • Sranan Tongo • Turkish • Venda

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English

Etymology 1

From Middle English bere (“barley”), from Old English bere (“barley”), from Proto-West Germanic *barī, from Proto-Germanic *baraz (“barley”). Compare Welsh bara (“bread”), Latin far (“emmer”), Serbo-Croatian бра̏шно/brȁšno (“flour”), Albanian bar (“grass”), Ancient Greek Φήρον (Phḗron, “plant deity”). See also: barley.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /bɪə/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (US) IPA^(key): /bɪɚ/
• Rhymes: -ɪə(ɹ)
• Homophones: beer, bier, bear (New Zealand, cheer–chair merger)

Noun

bere (uncountable)

1. (chiefly Scotland) Barley, especially four-rowed barley or six-rowed barley.

Alternative forms

• bear

Derived terms

• beremeal

Translations

six-rowed barley

• French: escourgeon (fr) m
• German: Frühgerste, Futtergerste (de)
• Irish: eorna bheag f
• Walloon: scweron (wa) m

Etymology 2

See bear (“pillowcase”)

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /bɪə/, /bɛə/
• (US) IPA^(key): /bɪɚ/, /bɛɚ/

Noun

bere (plural beres)

1. (now dialectal) A pillowcase; a fabric case or covering as for a pillow; a pillowbere.
   • 1976, Essex Record Office, Publications:

     Woven and embroidered coverlets in imitation of tapestry appear as 'a tapestry covering which lieth on my bed' [...] 'a pillow of feathers with a bere' (pillow-case); 'two pillows and the beres to [cover them]'

   • 2014 April 1, Phil Rickman, The Heresy of Dr Dee, Atlantic Books, →ISBN:

     [...] he'd tossed me an extra pillow in a bere.

References

• James A. H. Murray et al., editors (1884–1928), “Bere”, in A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles (Oxford English Dictionary), London: Clarendon Press, →OCLC.

Anagrams

• Beer, Bree, Eber, Erbe, Reeb, be-er, beer, bree, eber, reeb

Afrikaans

Noun

bere

1. plural of beer

Akan

Alternative forms

• berɛ (Asante)
• ber (Fante)

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

bere (Akuapem)

1. season

References

• Anane, J. Opoku (2000), “bere”, in Advance Akan Dictionary: Akuapim, Asante and Fante with Names and Meanings (overall work in English), Anwomaso – Kusami, Ghana: Prisebs Business Services, →ISBN, page 352

Bambara

Noun

bere

1. a stick

References

• Richard Nci Diarra, Lexique bambara-français-anglais, December 13, 2010

Basque

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /beɾe/ [be.ɾe]
• Rhymes: -eɾe, -e
• Hyphenation: be‧re

Etymology 1

Determiner

bere

1. genitive plural of bera; their

   Synonym: beren

Etymology 2

Pronoun

bere

1. genitive singular of bera; his, her, its

Chichewa

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *ìbéèdè.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɓé.ɽe/

Noun

bére class 5 (plural maŵére class 6)

1. breast, teat
2. part of a bunch of bananas, about a handful in size

Czech

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈbɛrɛ]
• Rhymes: -ɛrɛ
• Hyphenation: be‧re

Verb

bere

1. third-person singular present indicative of brát

Italian

Alternative forms

• bevere (archaic or dialectal, Rome)

Etymology

From a contraction of earlier bevere, from Latin bibere, from Proto-Italic *pibō, from Proto-Indo-European *píph₃eti. Cognate with Albanian pi, literary Armenian ըմպել (əmpel), Hindi पीना (pīnā), and Irish ibh.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbe.re/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ere
• Hyphenation: bé‧re

Verb

bére (first-person singular present bévo, first-person singular past historic bévvi or bevétti or (traditional) bevètti, past participle bevùto, first-person singular imperfect bevévo, first-person singular future berrò, auxiliary avére)

1. (ambitransitive) to drink [auxiliary avere]

Conjugation

    Conjugation of bére (-ere; irregular) (See Appendix:Italian verbs)

infinitive	bére
auxiliary verb		avére	gerund		bevèndo
present participle		bevènte	past participle		bevùto
person	singular			plural
	first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative	io	tu	lui/lei, esso/essa	noi	voi	loro, essi/esse
present	bévo	bévi	béve	beviàmo	bevéte	bévono
imperfect	bevévo	bevévi	bevéva	bevevàmo	bevevàte	bevévano
past historic	bévvi, bevétti, bevètti1	bevésti	bévve, bevétte, bevètte1	bevémmo	bevéste	bévvero, bevéttero, bevèttero1
future	berrò	berrài	berrà	berrémo	berréte	berrànno
conditional	berrèi	berrésti	berrèbbe, berrébbe	berrémmo	berréste	berrèbbero, berrébbero
subjunctive	che io	che tu	che lui/che lei, che esso/che essa	che noi	che voi	che loro, che essi/che esse
present	béva	béva	béva	beviàmo	beviàte	bévano
imperfect	bevéssi	bevéssi	bevésse	bevéssimo	bevéste	bevéssero
imperative	—	tu	Lei	noi	voi	Loro
		bévi	béva	beviàmo	bevéte	bévano
negative imperative		non bére	non béva	non beviàmo	non bevéte	non bévano

¹Traditional.

Including lesser-used forms:

    Conjugation of bére (-ere; irregular) (See Appendix:Italian verbs)

infinitive	bére
auxiliary verb		avére	gerund		bevèndo
present participle		bevènte	past participle		bevùto
person	singular			plural
	first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative	io	tu	lui/lei, esso/essa	noi	voi	loro, essi/esse
present	bévo	bévi, béi1	béve	beviàmo	bevéte	bévono
imperfect	bevévo	bevévi	bevéva	bevevàmo	bevevàte	bevévano
past historic	bévvi, bevétti, bevètti2, bevéi3	bevésti	bévve, bevétte, bevètte2, bevé3	bevémmo	bevéste	bévvero, bevéttero, bevèttero2, bevérono3
future	berrò, beverò3	berrài, beverài3	berrà, beverà3	berrémo, beverémo3	berréte, beveréte3	berrànno, beverànno3
conditional	berrèi, beverèi3	berrésti, beverésti3	berrèbbe, berrébbe, beverèbbe3, beverébbe3	berrémmo, beverémmo3	berréste, beveréste3	berrèbbero, berrébbero, beverèbbero3, beverébbero3
subjunctive	che io	che tu	che lui/che lei, che esso/che essa	che noi	che voi	che loro, che essi/che esse
present	béva	béva	béva	beviàmo	beviàte	bévano
imperfect	bevéssi	bevéssi	bevésse	bevéssimo	bevéste	bevéssero
imperative	—	tu	Lei	noi	voi	Loro
		bévi, béi1	béva	beviàmo	bevéte	bévano
negative imperative		non bére	non béva	non beviàmo	non bevéte	non bévano

¹Archaic or popular Tuscan.
²Traditional.
³Rare.

Related terms

• abbeverare
  • abbeveratoio
• bersi
• bevanda
• beveraggio
• beverino
• bevibile
• bevicchiare
• bevitore
• bevucchiare
• bevuta
• bevuto
  • bevuticcio
• imbevere
• sbevacchiare
• sbevazzare
• sbevere

Further reading

• “bere”, in Vocabolario Treccani on line (in Italian), Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana, 2026

Anagrams

• Eber, ebre, erbe, rebe

Latin

Adjective

bēre

1. vocative masculine singular of bērus

Middle Dutch

Etymology 1

From Old Dutch *bero, from Proto-West Germanic *berō, from Proto-Germanic *berô.

Noun

bēre m

1. bear

Inflection

Weak masculine noun

	singular	plural
nominative	bēre	bēren
accusative	bēre	bēren
genitive	bēren	bēren
dative	bēre	bēren

Descendants

• Dutch: beer
  • Afrikaans: beer
  • → Papiamentu: ber, beer
• Limburgish: baer, Béër
• West Flemish: beir
• Zealandic: beêr

Etymology 2

From Old Dutch *beri, from Proto-West Germanic *baʀi, from Proto-Germanic *bazją.

Noun

bēre f

1. berry

Inflection

Weak feminine noun

	singular	plural
nominative	bēre	bēren
accusative	bēre	bēren
genitive	bēre, bēren	bēren
dative	bēre, bēren	bēren

Descendants

• West Flemish: beier

Further reading

• “bere (I)”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
• “bere (II)”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
• Verwijs, E.; Verdam, J. (1885–1929), “bere (II)”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN, page II
• Verwijs, E.; Verdam, J. (1885–1929), “bere (V)”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN, page V

Middle English

Etymology 1

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *bʰerH-der.?

Proto-Indo-European *bʰerH-der.

Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰwer-der.

Proto-Germanic *berô

Proto-West Germanic *berō

Old English bera

Middle English bere

From Old English bera, *beora, from Proto-West Germanic *berō, from Proto-Germanic *berô.

Alternative forms

• beare, bier
• beere (Late Middle English)
• beor, beore, boere, bore, buere (south West Midlands, from Mercian Old English *beora)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbɛ̞ːr(ə)/

Noun

bere (plural beres)

1. A bear (mammal of the family Ursidae)
2. The Big Dipper or Little Dipper.

Related terms

• berewort

Descendants

• English: bear (see there for further descendants)
• Middle Scots: beir
  • Scots: bear, beir

References

• “bēr(e, n.(1).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Etymology 2

Inherited from Old English bere, from Proto-West Germanic *barī, from Proto-Germanic *baraz.

Alternative forms

• bare, ber (both rare)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbɛ̞ːr(ə)/

Noun

bere (uncountable)

1. barley (Hordeum vulgare or its grain)

Derived terms

• berebynde

Descendants

• English: bere, bear
• Middle Scots: bere, beir, bair, bear
  • Scots: bear, bere

References

• “bēr(e, n.(2).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Etymology 3

Noun

bere

1. alternative form of ber

Etymology 4

Verb

bere

1. alternative form of beren (“to bear”)

Etymology 5

Verb

bere

1. alternative form of beren (“to sound”)

Norwegian Nynorsk

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /²bɛːrə/

Alternative forms

• (she-bear): berre (Nord-Gudbrandsdalen)
• (she-bear): bera (dialectal)
• (she-bear): beru (Midlandsnormalen)

Etymology 1

From Old Norse bera.

Noun

bere f (definite singular bera, indefinite plural berer, definite plural berene)

1. a female bear, she-bear

   Synonyms: binne, hobjørn

   Inne mellom trea kunne dei skimta ei bere.

   Between the trees, they could discern a she-bear.

Etymology 2

Verb

bere (present tense ber, past tense bar, past participle bore, passive infinitive berast, present participle berande, imperative ber)

1. e-infinitive form of bera

References

• “bere” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Old English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbe.re/
• Rhymes: -e.re

Etymology 1

From Proto-West Germanic *barī, from Proto-Germanic *baraz. Cognate with Old Norse barr.

Noun

bere m

1. barley

Declension

Strong ja-stem:

	singular	plural
nominative	bere	beras
accusative	bere	beras
genitive	beres	bera
dative	bere	berum

Derived terms

• bærlīċ
• beren

Descendants

• Middle English: bere, bare, ber (both rare)
  • English: bere, bear
  • Middle Scots: bere, beir, bair, bear
    • Scots: bear, bere

Etymology 2

Verb

bere

1. first-person singular present indicative of beran

Old High German

Verb

bëre

1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive of bëran

Romanian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbe.re/

Etymology 1

Borrowed from German Bier. Influenced by the word below, meaning "action of drinking".

Noun

bere f (plural beri)

1. beer

   Vrem trei beri, te rog.

   We want three beers, please.

Declension

	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	bere	berea	beri	berile
genitive-dative	beri	berii	beri	berilor
vocative	bere, bereo		berilor

Derived terms

• berărie

Etymology 2

From bea (“to drink”) + -re.

Noun

bere f (uncountable)

1. (rare) (the act of) drinking

Declension

singular only	indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	bere	berea
genitive-dative	beri	berii
vocative	bere, bereo

Saterland Frisian

Etymology

From Old Frisian bera, from Proto-West Germanic *beran. Cognates include West Frisian barre and English bear.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbeːrə/
• Hyphenation: be‧re
• Rhymes: -eːrə

Verb

bere

1. (transitive) to bear; to give birth to
   • 2000, Marron C. Fort, transl., Dät Näie Tästamänt un do Psoolme in ju aasterlauwerfräiske Uurtoal fon dät Seelterlound, Fräislound, Butjoarlound, Aastfräislound un do Groninger Umelounde [The New Testament and the Psalms in the East Frisian language, native to Saterland, Friesland, Butjadingen, East Frisia and the Ommelanden of Groningen], →ISBN, Dät Evangelium ätter Matthäus 1:16:

     Jakob waas die Foar fon Josef, dän Mon fon Maria; Fon Maria wuud Jesus bädden, die die Christus (die Messias) namd wädt.

     Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Maria; From Maria Jesus was born, who is called Christus (the Messiah).

Conjugation

Conjugation of bere (irregular)

grúundfoarme		bere
infinitive		tou beren
		present	past
singular	iek	bere	búur
	du	beerst	búurst
	hie/ju/dät	beert	búur
plural		bere	búren
		imperative
singular		bere
plural		beret
		present	past
participle		berend	bädden
auxiliary verb		—	häbe

References

• Marron C. Fort (2015), “bere”, in Saterfriesisches Wörterbuch mit einer phonologischen und grammatischen Übersicht, Buske, →ISBN

Scots

Alternative forms

• bear

Etymology

Inherited from Middle Scots bere, beir, from Middle English bere, from Old English bere, from Proto-West Germanic *barī.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biːr/

Noun

bere (uncountable)

1. barley, especially six-rowed barley

Sranan Tongo

Etymology

From English belly; the sense "pregnancy" is possibly a semantic loan from Gun xoto (“belly, pregnancy”), Ewe [Term?], Ga [Term?]. Compare Maroon Spirit Language bere, Jamaican Creole beli, Krio bɛlɛ́.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbeɾe/, [ˈbɪ̞ɾɪ̞], [ˈbe̝ɾe̝]

Noun

bere

1. belly, stomach
2. womb
3. pregnancy, the state of being pregnant

Derived terms

• angribere (“hungry”)
• berebanti (“abdominal support belt”)
• bereman (“pregnant”)
• langabere
• ondrobere (“abdomen”)
• taibere (“cotton wraparound garment”)
• trangabere

Descendants

• Aukan: bee
• Saramaccan: bë́ë, bɛ́ɛ

References

• Wilner, John, editor (2003-2007), “bere”, in Languages of Suriname, 5th edition, SIL International, Sranan-English Dictionary

Turkish

Etymology 1

Borrowed from French béret.

Noun

bere (definite accusative bereyi, plural bereler)

1. beret

Etymology 2

Derived from Old Turkic bertmek (“to wound, to injure”).

Noun

bere (definite accusative bereyi, plural bereler)

1. wound, injury

   Synonym: bertik

Declension

Declension of bere

singular plural nominative bere bereler definite accusative bereyi bereleri dative bereye berelere locative berede berelerde ablative bereden berelerden genitive berenin berelerin Possessive forms nominative singular plural 1st singular berem berelerim 2nd singular beren berelerin 3rd singular beresi bereleri 1st plural beremiz berelerimiz 2nd plural bereniz bereleriniz 3rd plural bereleri bereleri definite accusative singular plural 1st singular beremi berelerimi 2nd singular bereni berelerini 3rd singular beresini berelerini 1st plural beremizi berelerimizi 2nd plural berenizi berelerinizi 3rd plural berelerini berelerini dative singular plural 1st singular bereme berelerime 2nd singular berene berelerine 3rd singular beresine berelerine 1st plural beremize berelerimize 2nd plural berenize berelerinize 3rd plural berelerine berelerine locative singular plural 1st singular beremde berelerimde 2nd singular berende berelerinde 3rd singular beresinde berelerinde 1st plural beremizde berelerimizde 2nd plural berenizde berelerinizde 3rd plural berelerinde berelerinde ablative singular plural 1st singular beremden berelerimden 2nd singular berenden berelerinden 3rd singular beresinden berelerinden 1st plural beremizden berelerimizden 2nd plural berenizden berelerinizden 3rd plural berelerinden berelerinden genitive singular plural 1st singular beremin berelerimin 2nd singular berenin berelerinin 3rd singular beresinin berelerinin 1st plural beremizin berelerimizin 2nd plural berenizin berelerinizin 3rd plural berelerinin berelerinin

Further reading

• “bere”, in Turkish dictionaries, Türk Dil Kurumu
• Ayverdi, İlhan (2010), “bere”, in Misalli Büyük Türkçe Sözlük, a reviewed and expanded single-volume edition, Istanbul: Kubbealtı Neşriyatı

Venda

Etymology

Borrowed from Afrikaans perd.

Noun

bere (plural dzibere)

1. horse