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What does deer mean?

Definitions for deer
dɪərdeer

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word deer.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. deer, cervidnoun

    distinguished from Bovidae by the male's having solid deciduous antlers

Wiktionary

  1. deernoun

    a ruminant mammal with antlers and hooves of the family Cervidae or one of several similar animals from related families of the order Artiodactyla

    I wrecked my car after a deer ran across the road.

  2. deernoun

    The meat of such an animal

    Oh I've never had deer before.

  3. deernoun

    Any animal, especially a mammal.

    But mice and rats and such small deer, have been Tom's food for seven long year. -Shakespeare, King Lear. Act III. Sc. IV.

  4. Etymology: From der, from deor, from deuzan, from dʰeusóm ‘living thing’ (compare Albanian dash ‘ram’, Lithuanian pl. daũsos ‘upper air; heaven’), from - ‘breath’ (compare dùsti ‘to sigh’, душа ‘breath, spirit’), full-grade derivative of (compare Lithuanian dvėsti ‘to breathe, exhale’, Russian ‘to cough’, Sanskrit ‘he falls to dust’). For semantic development compare animalis ‘animal’, from anima ‘breath, spirit’.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Deernoun

    That class of animals which is hunted for venison, containing many subordinate species.

    Etymology: deor, Saxon; thier, Teutonick; θῆρ Greek.

    You have beaten my men, killed my deer, and broke open my lodge. William Shakespeare, Merry Wives of Windsor.

    The pale that held my lovely deer. Edmund Waller.

Wikipedia

  1. Deer

    Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer (caribou), white-tailed deer, the roe deer, and the moose. Male deer of all species (except the water deer), as well as female reindeer, grow and shed new antlers each year. In this they differ from permanently horned antelope, which are part of a different family (Bovidae) within the same order of even-toed ungulates (Artiodactyla). The musk deer (Moschidae) of Asia and chevrotains (Tragulidae) of tropical African and Asian forests are separate families that are also in the ruminant clade Ruminantia; they are not especially closely related to Cervidae. Deer appear in art from Paleolithic cave paintings onwards, and they have played a role in mythology, religion, and literature throughout history, as well as in heraldry, such as red deer that appear in the coat of arms of Åland. Their economic importance includes the use of their meat as venison, their skins as soft, strong buckskin, and their antlers as handles for knives. Deer hunting has been a popular activity since the Middle Ages and remains a resource for many families today.

ChatGPT

  1. deer

    Deer are a group of hoofed, herbivorous mammals belonging to the family Cervidae. They are known for their branched antlers that are typically grown by males. Deer species range from very large to very small sizes and are indigenous to every continent except Antarctica. They are usually found in grasslands, forests, wetlands and are often characterized by slender bodies, long legs, and a distinctive coat which varies in color depending on the species. Their diet typically consists of grass, leaves, shoots, berries and nuts.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Deer

    any animal; especially, a wild animal

  2. Deer

    a ruminant of the genus Cervus, of many species, and of related genera of the family Cervidae. The males, and in some species the females, have solid antlers, often much branched, which are shed annually. Their flesh, for which they are hunted, is called venison

  3. Etymology: [OE. der, deor, animal, wild animal, AS. der; akin to D. dier, OFries. diar, G. thier, tier, Icel. dr, Dan. dyr, Sw. djur, Goth. dius; of unknown origin. 71.]

Wikidata

  1. Deer

    Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, mule deer such as black-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and also female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year. In this they differ from permanently horned animals such as antelope; these are in the same order as deer and may bear a superficial resemblance. The musk deer of Asia and water chevrotain of tropical African and Asian forests are not usually regarded as true deer and form their own families, Moschidae and Tragulidae, respectively.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Deer

    dēr, n. a quadruped of several species, as the stag, reindeer, &c.; in M. E., any kind of animal.—ns. Deer′-hair, heath club-rush; Deer′-herd; Deer′-hound; Deer′-lick, a spot of salt ground whither deer come to lick the earth; Deer′-mouse, a common name for several species of American mice—so called from their agility; Deer′-neck, a thin, ill-shaped neck—of horses; Deer′-skin, the skin of the deer, or leather made therefrom; Deer′-stalk′er; Deer′-stalk′ing, the hunting of deer by stalking, or stealing upon them unawares. [A.S. deór; Ger. thier, Dut. dier; Ice. dýr. There is no connection with Gr. thēr, L. fera, a wild beast.]

U.S. National Library of Medicine

  1. Deer

    The family Cervidae of 17 genera and 45 species occurring nearly throughout North America, South America, and Eurasia, on most associated continental islands, and in northern Africa. Wild populations of deer have been established through introduction by people in Cuba, New Guinea, Australia, New Zealand, and other places where the family does not naturally occur. They are slim, long-legged and best characterized by the presence of antlers. Their habitat is forests, swamps, brush country, deserts, and arctic tundra. They are usually good swimmers; some migrate seasonally. (Walker's Mammals of the World, 5th ed, p1362)

Editors Contribution

  1. deer

    A type of animal and mammal created and produced in various species.

    Deer are a beautiful animal and some have antlers.


    Submitted by MaryC on January 12, 2017  

Suggested Resources

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  2. Deer

    Dear vs. Deer -- In this Grammar.com article you will learn the differences between the words Dear and Deer.

Surnames Frequency by Census Records

  1. DEER

    According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Deer is ranked #11013 in terms of the most common surnames in America.

    The Deer surname appeared 2,888 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 would have the surname Deer.

    75% or 2,166 total occurrences were White.
    11.3% or 327 total occurrences were Black.
    6.2% or 179 total occurrences were American Indian or Alaskan Native.
    3.2% or 93 total occurrences were of two or more races.
    2.8% or 81 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.
    1.4% or 42 total occurrences were Asian.

Matched Categories

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

Anagrams for deer »

  1. dere

  2. de re

  3. dree

  4. rede

  5. reed

  6. Reed

How to pronounce deer?

How to say deer in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of deer in Chaldean Numerology is: 7

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of deer in Pythagorean Numerology is: 5

Examples of deer in a Sentence

  1. Kirsten Johnson:

    If Health Services spokesperson Elizabeth Goodsitt look at the total number of cases connected to the Deer District over the past month compared to the total number of cases in the state, it's really not that significant.

  2. Tehanairo Tetawhero of Taumarunui:

    And I was like wemight as well finish the night with a bang, pull over Ill chuck the deer on my back and Ill walk through.

  3. Yu Qiangmin:

    At the moment the real money-spinners are deer antler and ginseng.

  4. Patti Galloway:

    They grabbed him out like they were grabbing a dead deer out of a pickup, grabbed him by his front arms and just ripped him out and dropped him, and his head whacked against the concrete.

  5. Emily Dickinson:

    A wounded deer leaps the highest.

more sentences »

Popularity rank by frequency of use

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Translations for deer

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