different between derm vs dern

English

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -??(?)m

Etymology 1

Ancient Greek ????? (dérma, “skin”).

Noun

derm

1. (anatomy) The integument of animal; the skin.
2. Alternative form of dermis

Etymology 2

Shortening.

Noun

derm (plural derms)

1. (slang) Clipping of dermatologist.

Etymology 3

From a borrowing of Afrikaans derm (“intestine”), related to Dutch darm (“intestine”). Doublet of tharm.

Noun

derm (plural derms)

1. (South Africa, slang, usually in the plural) guts

   What are you going to do with the fish derms?

   I saw an accident and a girl was lying on the pavement and her derms were all hanging out.

References

• 1978: A Dictionary of South African English. Ed. Jean Branford. Oxford University Press.

Anagrams

• D-MER, Drem, E-DRM, EDMR, EMDR, merd

Afrikaans

Noun

derm (plural derms)

1. intestine, gut

Related terms

• ingewande

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?d??(?)n/

Alternative forms

• dearn, darn

Etymology 1

From Middle English dern, derne, from Old English dyrne, dierne (“secret”), from Proto-West Germanic *darn? (“hidden, secret”).

Noun

dern (plural derns)

1. (obsolete) A secret; secrecy.
2. (obsolete) A secret place; hiding.
3. (obsolete) An obscure language.
4. (obsolete) Darkness; obscurity.

Derived terms

• in dern

Etymology 2

From Middle English dern, derne, from Old English dyrne, dierne (“hidden, secret, retired, obscure, remote, eluding detection, concealed, deceitful, evil, magical”), from Proto-West Germanic *darn? (“hidden, secret”).

Adjective

dern (comparative more dern, superlative most dern)

1. (obsolete) Hidden; secret; private.
   • 1659, Dr. H. More, Immortal, of the Soul

     Now with their backs to the den's mouth they sit, / Yet shoulder not all light from the dern pit.

   • 1819, J. R. Drake, The Culprit Fay

     Through dreary beds of tangled fern, / Through groves of nightshade dark and dern.

Etymology 3

From Middle English dernen, dærnen, from Old English dyrnan, diernan (“to keep secret, conceal, hide, restrain, repress, hide oneself”), from Proto-West Germanic *darnijan (“to conceal”), from *darn? (“hidden, secret”). Cognate with Old Saxon dernian (“to conceal”), German tarnen (“to camougflage, disguise”). See also darn, tarnish.

Verb

dern (third-person singular simple present derns, present participle derning, simple past and past participle derned)

1. (transitive, obsolete) To hide; secrete, as in a hole.
   • 1865, Hugh Miller, My schools and schoolmasters

     He at length escaped them by derning himself in a fox-earth.

2. (intransitive, obsolete) To hide oneself; skulk.
   • 1584, Thomas Hudson, Judith

     But look how soon they heard of Holoferne / Their courage quail'd, and they began to derne.

Related terms

• darn
• tarnish

Etymology 4

Uncertain.

Noun

dern (plural derns)

1. (Britain) A gatepost or doorpost.
   • 1855, Charles Kingsley, Westward Ho!, Ch. XIV, How Salvation Yeo Slew the King of the Gubbings

     So I just put my eye between the wall and the dern of the gate, and I saw him come up to the back door […]

Anagrams

• NERD, nerd, rend

Old Irish

Verb

·dern

1. first-person singular present subjunctive prototonic ro-form of do·gní