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Wiktionary The Free Dictionary

ours

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From Middle English oures , attested since the 1300s. Equivalent to our +‎ -s (compare -'s ); formed by analogy to his . Displaced ourn (from Middle English ouren ) in standard speech.[1]

Pronunciation

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Pronoun

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ours (plural ours, the possessive case of we, used without a following noun)

  1. That or those belonging to us.
    1. Excluding the person(s) being addressed (exclusive ours)
      You can't take that! It's ours!
      Could we ask you to move, please. These seats are ours.
      This beach is a favourite of ours. (double possessive )
    2. Including the person(s) being addressed (inclusive ours).
      We should ask for it back. After all, it is ours.
      Don't you think that ours looks much nicer than theirs?
  2. That or those belonging to any entity that the speaker is a part of or identifies with, such as place of employment or education, nation, region, language, etc.
    French food is better than ours.
  3. That or those belonging to people in general.
    As we get older, maintaining an active social life should be a priority of ours. (double possessive )
  4. (colloquial ) That or those belonging to everyone being addressed.
    Good evening everyone. How are we all tonight? I know I've got my happy face on; have we all got ours on too?
  5. (colloquial , may seem patronising) That or those belonging to an individual being addressed; used especially to a person in the speaker's care, or to whom advice or instruction is being given.
    Hello Mrs Miggins. How are we feeling this morning? Oh, what's that bottle of tablets under our chair? Is that ours?
  6. (colloquial ) Used to imply connection between the speaker's experiences or activities and a group of listeners.
    Hey guys, in this video I'll show you how I make my upside-down sponge cake. There are lots of recipes for these, but ours is the best.
  7. (informal ) Our house or home.
    You can stay the night at ours if you like.

Derived terms

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Translations

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that which belongs to us

References

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  1. ^ Douglas Harper (2001–2026), "ours", in Online Etymology Dictionary .

Anagrams

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French

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Etymology

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Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *h2ŕ̥tḱos
Proto-Italic *orsos
Latin ursus
Old French urs
Middle French ours
French ours

    Inherited from Middle French ours , from Old French urs , from Latin ursus , from Proto-Italic *orsos , from Proto-Indo-European *h2ŕ̥tḱos .

    The Early Modern French pronunciation was /uʁ/ before consonants, /uʁz/ before vowels, and /uʁs/ in pausa. For the most part, the pausal pronunciations were eventually lost, but in some cases they were re-established as the basic form (reinforced in part by the spelling, in part by related words; in this case perhaps the feminine ourse ).

    Pronunciation

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    Noun

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    ours m (invariable , feminine ourse )

    1. bear
    2. (figurative ) A person like a bear:
      1. loner, someone who avoids company [since 1671]
        faire l'ours ― to be a loner
        • 2024 May 25, "Couples Erasmus", in Libération , →ISSN, page 5:
          Globalement, on trouvait que les Danois étaient un peu ours : ils disaient à peine bonjour quand on les croisait dans la résidence universitaire.
          (please add an English translation of this quotation)
      2. beast, beastly person [since 1820]
      3. (gay slang ) bear (hairy gay man)
      4. (obsolete ) pressman, worker with a hand printing press [1700s—1800s]
    3. masthead, imprint (list of a publication's main staff)
    4. (cinematography ) rough cut
    5. (slang ) prison, jail

    Derived terms

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    Descendants

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    Further reading

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    Middle English

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    Pronoun

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    ours

    1. alternative form of oures

    Middle French

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    Etymology

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    Etymology tree
    Proto-Indo-European *h2ŕ̥tḱos
    Proto-Italic *orsos
    Latin ursus
    Old French urs
    Middle French ours

      Inherited from Old French urs , from Latin ursus , from Proto-Italic *orsos , from Proto-Indo-European *h2ŕ̥tḱos .

      Noun

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      ours m (plural ours, feminine singular ourse , feminine plural ourses )

      1. bear

      Descendants

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