erf

Contents

EnglishEdit

Alternative formsEdit

• airf

PronunciationEdit

• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)f

Etymology 1Edit

From Middle English erfe, erve, from Old English yrfe, ierfe (“heritage, bequest, inheritance, property, inherited property, property that passes to an heir, cattle, livestock”), from Proto-Germanic *arbiją (“heritage”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₃erbʰ- (“to change ownership”) (from which also *h₃órbʰos (“orphan”)). Cognate with Dutch erf (“inheritance, patrimony, ground, courtyard”), German Erbe (“heritage, legacy, inheritance”), Danish arv (“heritage, inheritance”), Swedish arv (“heritage, inheritance”), Gothic 𐌰𐍂𐌱𐌹 (arbi, “inheritance”), Latin orbus (“orphan”), Ancient Greek ὀρφανός (orphanós, “orphan”), Old English ierfa (“heir”). Related to orf.

NounEdit

erf (plural erfs)

1. (Northern England, Scotland, rare) Inheritance; patrimony.

   Son, you will have this farm to erf.

2. (by extension) Stock; cattle.

Derived termsEdit

• erfkin

ReferencesEdit

• The Dictionary of the Scots Language

Etymology 2Edit

From Dutch erf (“patrimony, ground”), related to English erf above.

NounEdit

erf (plural erfs or erven)

1. (US regional, Cape Colony, New York, South Africa) A small inherited house-and-garden lot in a village or settlement.

Etymology 3Edit

Abbreviation.

NounEdit

erf

1. (mathematics) error function

AnagramsEdit

• REF, Ref, Ref., f***er, fer, ref

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DutchEdit

PronunciationEdit

• Audio

  (file)

Etymology 1Edit

From Middle Dutch erve, from Old Dutch ervi, from Proto-Germanic *arbiją.

NounEdit

erf n (plural erven, diminutive erfje n)

1. yard

Etymology 2Edit

See etymology on the main entry.

VerbEdit

erf

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