pert

See also: Appendix:Variations of "pert"

English

Etymology

From Middle English pert, perte, aphetic form of apert.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /pɜːt/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

• (General American) IPA^(key): /pɝt/
• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)t

Adjective

pert (comparative perter, superlative pertest)

1. (of a person) Attractive.
2. (of a part of the body) Well-formed; shapely. [from 14th c.]

   pert breasts

3. Lively; alert and cheerful; bright. [from 16th c.]
   • c. 1595–1596 (date written), William Shakespeare, A Midsommer Nights Dreame. […] (First Quarto), London: […] [Richard Bradock] for Thomas Fisher, […], published 1600, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:

     Goe Philoſtrate, / Stirre vp the Athenian youth to merriments, / Awake the peart and nimble ſpirit of mirth, / Turne melancholy foorth to funerals: […]

   • 2001, Donald Spoto, chapter 1, in Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, page 11:

     He was instantly attracted to Gladys's pert, fey humor and her good nature.

4. (archaic) Especially of children or social inferiors: cheeky, impertinent. [from 15th c.]

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:cheeky

   • 1741, [Samuel Richardson], “Letter XVI”, in Pamela: Or, Virtue Rewarded. […], 3rd edition, volume I, London: […] C[harles] Rivington, […]; and J. Osborn, […], →OCLC, page 37:

     Says Mrs. Jervis, Pamela, don’t be pert to his Honour? You ſhould know your Diſtance; you ſee his Honour was only in Jeſt.

   • 1848 November – 1850 December, William Makepeace Thackeray, The History of Pendennis. […], volumes (please specify |volume=I or II), London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1849–1850, →OCLC:

     [T]he Major began to think that Pen was growing exceedingly pert and conceited, and that the world made a great deal too much of him.

   • 1857–1859, W[illiam] M[akepeace] Thackeray, chapter XXXIV, in The Virginians. A Tale of the Last Century, volumes (please specify |volume=I or II), London: Bradbury & Evans, […], published 1858–1859, →OCLC:

     […] so that I couldn't help telling her, sir, that in our country, leastways in Virginia (they say the Yankees are very pert), young people don't speak of their elders so.

   • 1885, William Dean Howells, chapter XII, in The Rise of Silas Lapham‎^[1]:

     “Then you didn't find her so amusing as Tom does?”
     “I found her pert. There's no other word for it. She says things to puzzle you and put you out.”

   • 2009, Hilary Mantel, Wolf Hall, Fourth Estate, published 2010, page 333:

     "You'll not be so pert when the Cornish seize you. They spit children like you and roast them on bonfires."

5. (obsolete) Open; evident; unhidden. [14th–17th c.]
   • [15th century, “[Richard the Redeles.] Passus Quartus.”, in Walter W[illiam] Skeat, editor, The Vision of William Concerning Piers the Plowman, Dowel, Dobet, and Dobest, […]. Richard the Redeles, […] The Crowned King, […] (Early English Text Society, Part III; 54) (in Middle English), London: […] [F]or the Early English Text Society by N[icholas] Trübner & Co., […], published 1873, →OCLC, page 503, lines 88–90:

     Some parled as perte · as prouyd well after, / And clappid more ffor þe coyne · þat þe kyng oweth hem / Thanne ffor comfforte of þe comyne […]

     Some talked as openly, as proud well after, / And clapped more for the coin that the king owes them / Than for comfort of the common […]]

6. (obsolete) Clever.

Derived terms

• pert as a pearmonger
• pertly
• pertness
• overpert

Translations

attractive

• Czech: pěkný (cs)
• German: attraktiv (de)

well-formed, shapely

• Czech: pěkný (cs), hezký (cs), hezoučký (cs)
• German: wohlgeformt (de)
• Swedish: välskapt

lively; brisk; sprightly; smart

• Bulgarian: жив (bg) (živ), игрив (bg) (igriv)
• French: animé (fr) m
• German: flott (de), lebhaft (de), schwungvoll (de), munter (de)
• Hungarian: élénk (hu), vidám (hu)
• Italian: vivace (it) m or f, faceto (it)
• Russian: бо́дрый (ru) (bódryj)
• Swedish: rapp (sv)

indecorously free, or presuming; saucy; bold; impertinent

• Bulgarian: устат (bg) (ustat), нахален (bg) (nahalen)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 无礼的 (wúlǐ), (traditional) 無禮／无礼 (zh) (wúlǐ)

• Czech: troufalý (cs), smělý (cs), odvážný (cs)
• French: impertinent (fr) m
• German: keck (de), frech (de)
• Hungarian: pimasz (hu), hetyke (hu), szemtelen (hu)
• Italian: impertinente (it)
• Latin: procax
• Plautdietsch: frajch
• Russian: де́рзкий (ru) (dérzkij), на́глый (ru) (náglyj), наха́льный (ru) (naxálʹnyj)
• Swedish: käck (sv), fräck (sv)

Verb

pert (third-person singular simple present perts, present participle perting, simple past and past participle perted)

1. (intransitive, obsolete) To behave with pertness; to misbehave.

Noun

pert (plural perts)

1. (obsolete) An impudent person.

Anagrams

• 'terp, -pter, pret., rept-, terp

Hungarian

Etymology

per +‎ -t

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈpɛrt]
• Hyphenation: pert

Noun

pert

1. accusative singular of per

   pert indít ― to sue

Ladin

Alternative forms

• part

Etymology

From Latin pars, partem.

Noun

pert f (plural pertes)

1. part

Related terms

• partir

Middle Dutch

Etymology

From Old Dutch *peret, from Late Latin paraverēdus.

Noun

pert n

1. horse

Inflection

This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Alternative forms

• pāert
• pēert

Descendants

• Dutch: paard, perd
  • Afrikaans: perd
    • → Phuthi: ipere
    • → Sotho: pere
  • Jersey Dutch: pêrt, pêrd
  • → English: prad
• Limburgish: paerd
• West Flemish: peird

Further reading

• “pert”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
• Verwijs, E., Verdam, J. (1885–1929) “pert”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN

Turkish

Etymology

Borrowed from French perte.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [pæɾt]

Noun

pert (definite accusative perti, plural pertler)

1. For something to decrease in value.
2. For damage to be done to something.

   Araba pert oldu.

   The car was destroyed.

Declension

Inflection
Nominative	pert
Definite accusative	perti
	Singular	Plural
Nominative	pert	pertler
Definite accusative	perti	pertleri
Dative	perte	pertlere
Locative	pertte	pertlerde
Ablative	pertten	pertlerden
Genitive	pertin	pertlerin
Possessive forms Nominative Singular Plural 1st singular pertim pertlerim 2nd singular pertin pertlerin 3rd singular perti pertleri 1st plural pertimiz pertlerimiz 2nd plural pertiniz pertleriniz 3rd plural pertleri pertleri Definite accusative Singular Plural 1st singular pertimi pertlerimi 2nd singular pertini pertlerini 3rd singular pertini pertlerini 1st plural pertimizi pertlerimizi 2nd plural pertinizi pertlerinizi 3rd plural pertlerini pertlerini Dative Singular Plural 1st singular pertime pertlerime 2nd singular pertine pertlerine 3rd singular pertine pertlerine 1st plural pertimize pertlerimize 2nd plural pertinize pertlerinize 3rd plural pertlerine pertlerine Locative Singular Plural 1st singular pertimde pertlerimde 2nd singular pertinde pertlerinde 3rd singular pertinde pertlerinde 1st plural pertimizde pertlerimizde 2nd plural pertinizde pertlerinizde 3rd plural pertlerinde pertlerinde Ablative Singular Plural 1st singular pertimden pertlerimden 2nd singular pertinden pertlerinden 3rd singular pertinden pertlerinden 1st plural pertimizden pertlerimizden 2nd plural pertinizden pertlerinizden 3rd plural pertlerinden pertlerinden Genitive Singular Plural 1st singular pertimin pertlerimin 2nd singular pertinin pertlerinin 3rd singular pertinin pertlerinin 1st plural pertimizin pertlerimizin 2nd plural pertinizin pertlerinizin 3rd plural pertlerinin pertlerinin

Welsh

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pɛrt/

Adjective

pert (feminine singular pert, plural perton, equative perted, comparative pertach, superlative pertaf)

1. pretty, attractive
2. quaint

Mutation

Welsh mutation
radical	soft	nasal	aspirate
pert	bert	mhert	phert
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.