English edit

Alternative forms edit

Etymology edit

49 +‎ -er

Noun edit

49er (plural 49ers)

  1. (nautical) A class of two-handed double-trapeze dinghy (from its maximum length of 16 feet, approx. 4900 millimetres).
  2. (historical) A miner or other person who took part in the California Gold Rush of 1849.
    Synonym: argonaut
    • 1922, Allen Chaffee, Unexplored![1]:
      The old prospector told them how, in the days of the 49ers, [] the Mexicans had been treated in a way they had practically never forgiven. The land was free. Discovery and appropriation of a mining claim gave title, provided it was staked out and a notice scratched on a tin plate affixed to the claim stake, and likewise provided that the size of the claim accorded with the crude ruling for that region.
  3. (American football) A player for the San Francisco 49ers, an NFL team.
  4. (sports) A student or player on a sports team at California State University, Long Beach (more commonly known as “Long Beach State”, founded in 1849).
  5. (sports) A student or player on a sports team at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte (more commonly known as “Charlotte” in a sports context).

Further reading edit