er English · revision 6535

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=onomatopoeia|attested=1862}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ɜː/; /ɜɹ/ ''(US)''^(Wiktionary)

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+ ==Etymology==

+ It is a natural utterance, representing the sound a hesitant speaker makes.^(NODE 1998)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The inarticulate murmur of a hesitating speaker: 1862 in the OED and MWU,^(OED 1989)^(MWU 2024) the mid-19th century in Etymonline and NODE.^(Etymonline)^(NODE 1998)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ In non-rhotic British English the spelling er represents a sound without an /r/, usually /ɜː/ or /ə/;^(Roach et al. 2011)^(Collins 2023) American writers tend to spell the same hesitation [[uh]].^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1862 – a sound of hesitation.^(OED 1989)^(MWU 2024)

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+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Interjection===

+ # Used to express hesitation or uncertainty in speech.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

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+ ==Related words==

+ * [[um]]

+ * [[uh]]

+ * [[erm]]

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+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''ER'' is also an abbreviation of emergency room (by 1965) and of Elizabeth Regina, Queen Elizabeth.^(Etymonline)^(Collins 2023) The OED records an obsolete conjunction er, meaning [[or]] (about 1220).^(OED 1989)

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+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}