See also: Spier

English

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Etymology

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Inherited from Middle English spier, spyer, spiar, equivalent to spy +‎ -er. Compare Dutch verspieder and bespieder (spier), German Späher (spier). Compare also Danish spejde (spy), Swedish speja (spy).

Noun

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spier (plural spiers)

  1. (rare) One who spies; a spy.

Anagrams

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Afrikaans

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Pronunciation

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  • Audio:(file)

Noun

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spier (plural spiere)

  1. muscle

Dutch

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Dutch Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia nl

Etymology

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From Middle Dutch spier (pointed object; blade of grass; long pole; muscle), from Old Dutch *spīr, from Proto-Germanic *spīraz, *spīrǭ. In Middle Dutch, the word took the meaning "muscle", likely due to the similarities in shape between its earlier meanings and muscle fibers.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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spier f (plural spieren, diminutive spiertje n)

  1. muscle (contractile tissue)
  2. (archaic) blade (of a plant)
    Synonyms: spriet, halm
  3. (archaic) blade of grass
    Synonyms: grasspriet, grashalm
  4. spar (pole)
    Synonym: rondhout

Derived terms

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Descendants

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  • Afrikaans: spier
  • Papiamentu: spir, spier

Noun

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spier n (uncountable)

  1. (dated) the collective of muscles
  2. (obsolete) poultry, white meat, the whitish meat of fowl [16th–18th c.]

Anagrams

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