different between deer vs deers

English

Etymology

From Middle English deere, dere, der, dier, deor (“small animal, deer”), from Old English d?or (“animal”), from Proto-West Germanic *deu?, from Proto-Germanic *deuz?, from Proto-Indo-European *d?ewsóm (“living thing”), from *d?éws (“breath”), full-grade derivative of *d?wes-.

Cognate with Scots dere, deir (“deer”), North Frisian dier (“animal, beast”), West Frisian dier (“animal, beast”), Dutch dier (“animal, beast”), German Low German Deer, Deert (“animal”), German Tier (“animal, beast”), Swedish djur (“animal, beast”), Norwegian dyr (“animal”), Icelandic dýr (“animal, beast”).

Related also to Albanian dash (“ram”) (possibly), Lithuanian da?sos (“upper air; heaven”), Lithuanian dùsti (“to sigh”), Russian ????? (dušá, “breath, spirit”), Lithuanian dv?sti (“to breathe, exhale”), Sanskrit ??????? (dhva?sati, “he falls to dust”).

For the semantic development compare Latin anim?lis (“animal”), from anima (“breath, spirit”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /d??/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /d??/
• (Scotland, some US) IPA^(key): /di??/
• Rhymes: -??(?)
• Homophones: dear, dir

Noun

deer (plural deer or (nonstandard) deers)

1. A ruminant mammal with antlers and hooves of the family Cervidae, or one of several similar animals from related families of the order Artiodactyla.
2. (in particular) One of the smaller animals of this family, distinguished from a moose or elk

3. The meat of such an animal; venison.

4. (obsolete, except in the phrase "small deer") Any animal, especially a quadrupedal mammal as opposed to a bird, fish, etc.
   • 1606, William Shakespeare, King Lear, Act III. IV

     But mice and rats and such small deer, have been Tom's food for seven long year.

Hyponyms

• buck, stag (male deer); doe, hind (female deer); fawn (young deer); hart (adult deer)

Derived terms

Descendants

• Sranan Tongo: dia

Translations

Anagrams

• Rede, Reed, de re, dere, dree, rede, reed

Dutch

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -e?r

Verb

deer

1. first-person singular present indicative of deren
2. imperative of deren

Hunsrik

Alternative forms

• tëyer (Wiesemann spelling system)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?te??/

Etymology 1

From Middle High German and Old High German ir. Compare Luxembourgish dir.

Pronoun

deer

1. you (plural)

Inflection

Etymology 2

Pronoun

deer

1. stressed dative of du.

Inflection

Further reading

• Online Hunsrik Dictionary

Limburgish

Etymology

From Middle Dutch dier, from Old Dutch dier, from Proto-Germanic *deuz?.

Noun

deer n

1. pet
2. (obsolete) beast, animal

Inflection

• The dative and accusative are obsolete nowadays; use the nominative instead.

Saterland Frisian

Etymology

From Old Frisian d?r, th?r, from Proto-West Germanic *þ?r. More at there.

Adverb

deer

1. there

English

Noun

deers

1. (dated or nonstandard) plural of deer
   • 1984, Justin Wilson, Howard Jacobs, More Cajun Humor, page 79,

     “Not dem kinda deers, dese de kine wit? antling.”

     She say, “I?m goin? witcha.”

     He say, “I'll be damned, iss not?ing but a dirty ol? men's camp an? you can?t go.”

     Well, she bawled an? squalled and raise some sand, but he went to hont dem deers.

   • 1985, R.E.M., "Cant Get There from Here" from Fables of the Reconstruction

     "Tris is sure to shirr the deers out"

   • 2001, William Arnett, Emmer Sewell, Paul Arnett, William Arnett (editors), Souls Grown Deep: African American Vernacular Art of the South, Volume 2, page 191,

     “They there to scare the deers away from the garden. Deers, they slip in here at night and make a mess eating up things,” she says.

   • “If you call shooting deers in some kind of deer zoo great sport,” Sarah said.

Usage notes

Modern usage is likely to be regarded as an error or indicative of nonstandard speech. The standard (irregular) plural is deer.

Occasionally used in the sense of more than one species, especially when appearing in combination (such as red deer / red deers).

Anagrams

• Edser, Seder, dere's, deres, drees, redes, reeds, resed, seder