fir
See also: FIR, fir-, and fír
English
A fir tree (Abies balsamea)
Etymology
From Middle English firre, from either Old Norse fýri (as in fýriskógr (“pine-wood”)[1] or Old English fyrh, furh (as in furhwudu (“pinewood”),[2] from Proto-West Germanic *furhu, from Proto-Germanic *furhō, *furhijǭ, from Proto-Indo-European *pŕ̥kʷeh₂, from *pérkʷus (“oak”).
Germanic cognates include Dutch vuren, Low German Fuhr, German Föhre (“pine”), Danish fyr). Outside of Germanic, compare Italian (Trentino) porca (“fir”), Latin quercus (“oak”), Albanian shpardh, shparr (“Italian oak”), Punjabi ਪਰਗਾਇ (pargāī, “holm oak, Quercus baloot”)). Related to frith.
Pronunciation
- (UK) IPA(key): /fɜː(ɹ)/
Audio (UK) (file) - (US) enPR: fûr, IPA(key): /fɝ/
Audio (US) (file) - (Scotland) IPA(key): /fɪɹ/
- Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)
- Homophone: fur (with the fir-fur merger)
Noun
fir (countable and uncountable, plural firs)
- (chiefly countable) A conifer of the genus Abies.
- 1907, Harold Bindloss, chapter 1, in The Dust of Conflict:
- A beech wood with silver firs in it rolled down the face of the hill, and the maze of leafless twigs and dusky spires cut sharp against the soft blueness of the evening sky.
-
- (chiefly countable) Any pinaceous conifer of related genera, especially a Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga) or a Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris).
- 1954, J. R. R. Tolkien, chapter 3, in The Lord of the Rings:
- we shall find a spot that is sheltered and snug enough, sir. There is a dry fir-wood just ahead, if I remember rightly.
- 1991, Paul Chadwick, Concrete: American Christmas, Dark Horse Books
- I can almost smell the fir scent… resinous, pungent.
-
- (uncountable) Wood of such trees.
Synonyms
- (all countable senses): fir-tree
- (wood): firwood
Derived terms
- balsam fir - Abies balsamea
- balsam of fir
- bristlecone fir - Abies bracteata
- Chinese fir - Cunninghamia lanceolata
- corkbark fir - Abies lasiocarpa
- Doug fir
- Douglas fir, Douglas-fir - Pseudotsuga menziesii
- fir adelgid - Adelges abietis
- fir clubmoss - Huperzia selago
- fir-cone
- firleaf beardtongue - Penstemon abietinus
- firless
- firlike
- fir mistletoe - Phoradendron pauciflorum
- firmoss - Huperzia spp.
- firry
- Fraser fir - Abies fraseri
- grand fir - Abies grandis
- Guatemalan fir - Abies guatemalensis
- joint fir
- jointfir - Ephedra
- Momi fir - Abies firma
- mountain fir clubmoss
- Nikko fir - Abies homolepis
- noble fir - Abies procera
- Pacific silver fir - Abies amabilis
- red fir - Abies spp.
- Riga fir - Pinus sylvestris
- sacred fir - Abies religiosa
- Scotch fir - Pinus sylvestris
- sea fir - Abietinaria abietina (syn. Sertularia abietina)
- silver fir - Abies alba
- sprucefir fleabane - Erigeron eximius
- subalpine fir - Abies lasiocarpa
- white fir - Abies concolor
Translations
conifer of the genus Abies
|
References
- Oxford English Dictionary, 3rd edn., s.v. "fir" (Oxford, 2000).
- J.P. Mallory, Douglas Q. Adams, eds., Encyclopedia of Indo-European Culture s.v. "oak", "pine" (London: Fitzroy Dearborn, 1997), pp. 407, 428-9.
Anagrams
- Fri, IFR, IRF, RFI, RIF, Rif, rif
Irish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /fʲɪɾʲ/
Noun
fir m
- inflection of fear (“man; husband”):
- vocative/genitive singular
- nominative/dative plural
Mutation
| Irish mutation | ||
|---|---|---|
| Radical | Lenition | Eclipsis |
| fir | fhir | bhfir |
| Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs. | ||
Luxembourgish
Etymology
From Old High German furi, from Proto-West Germanic *furi, from Proto-Germanic *furi. Cognate with German für, English for.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /fiːʀ/, [ˈfiː.ɐ], [fiə̯]
- IPA(key): /fe(ʀ)/, [fɐ], [fə] (reduced)
- Homophone: vir
Preposition
fir (+ accusative)
- for
Derived terms
- fir datt
- fir d'éischt
- fir ze
Manx
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /fɪr/
Noun
fir
- plural of fer
Mutation
| Manx mutation | ||
|---|---|---|
| Radical | Lenition | Eclipsis |
| fir | ir | vir |
| Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs. | ||
Middle English
Noun
fir
- Alternative form of firre
Northern Kurdish
Alternative forms
- firr
Noun
fir f
- flight (act of flying)
Norwegian Bokmål
Verb
fir
- imperative of fire
Old Irish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /fʲirʲ/
Noun
fir
- inflection of fer:
- vocative/genitive singular
- nominative plural
Mutation
| Old Irish mutation | ||
|---|---|---|
| Radical | Lenition | Nasalization |
| fir | ḟir | fir pronounced with /v(ʲ)-/ |
| Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs. | ||
Romanian
Etymology
From Latin fīlum, from Proto-Indo-European *gʷʰiH-(s-)lo-.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /fir/
Audio (file)
Noun
fir n (plural fire)
- thread, string, filament, wire
- (fir de păr) a hair
Derived terms
- desfira
- înfira
- răsfira
See also
- sârmă f
Scottish Gaelic
Noun
fir m
- genitive singular of fear
- nominative plural of fear
Mutation
| Scottish Gaelic mutation | |
|---|---|
| Radical | Lenition |
| fir | fhir |
| Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs. | |