Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. One that performs a specified action: accelerator.
- n. State; quality; activity: valor.
Wiktionary
- n. Suffix appended to words to create an agent noun, indicating a person who does something.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. A noun suffix denoting an act; a state or quality; as in err
or , fervor , pallor , candor , etc. - n. A noun suffix denoting an agent or doer; as in audit
or , one who hears; donor , one who gives; obligor , elevator . It is correlative to -ee. In general-or is appended to words of Latin, and-er to those of English, origin. See -er.
Etymologies
- Middle English -or, -our, from Old French -eor, -eur and Anglo-Norman -our, -ur, all from Latin -or, -ōr-.Middle English -our, from Old French -eur, from Latin -or, -ōr-. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Nobody is surprised -or bothered- to see Robert De Niro or Al Pacino on the cover of a magazine.”
“Maybe from the developing world we can redefine -or even improve- the concept of development.”
The Huffington Post: Paula Escobar Chavarría: Chilean Indignados: I'm Proud of Our Young Generation
“I figure these days moms--and dads--need to grab a break whenever they can, whether on a business trip or traveling with the kids and there's nothing like a spa -or a stay in a hotel where you are pampered from check in to check out--to accomplish that goal.”
The Huffington Post: Eileen Ogintz: Spas Aren't Just For Grown Ups Anymore
“After the initial titillation of getting away with something so devious in the name of vengeance, it is likely that I -or anyone for that matter- would be spending the next few weeks peeking out the window to see if the cops had shown up yet.”
The Huffington Post: Hayley Rose Horzepa: Forgiving My Rapist
“She might get picked on in school a lot by the other kids -or even worse: poked.”
The Huffington Post: Dean Obeidallah: A Girl Named "Facebook"
“Bond prices are so robust that in April, 70% of outstanding investment-grade corporate bonds traded above par—-or face value—compared with 61% in April last year, according to MarketAxess data.”
The Wall Street Journal: Bubble in Corporate Bonds? Portfolio Managers Mostly Say No
“Mr. Atwood was skeptical that one bank could provide the best "execution"-or trades at the best available prices-70% of the time.”
“Polls offer only modest help in understanding consumer concerns and habits—-or which companies are doing the most “social good.””
“Were they real diamonds, rubies, emeralds—-or fakes?”
“When millions of people can't get the care they need to maintain their health - and the health of their children -or manage to afford critical, life saving care, is it conceivable that they might just find themselves in a situation a little more serious than having to pass up tickets to the All-Star game?”
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