silver

English Online Dictionary. What means silver‎? What does silver mean?

English

Etymology

From Middle English silver, selver, sulver, from Old English seolfor, from Proto-West Germanic *silubr, from Proto-Germanic *silubrą (“silver”), of uncertain origin.

Adjective sense of twenty-fifth wedding anniversary generalized from silver wedding, from German Silberhochzeit, silberne Hochzeit.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈsɪl.və/
• (General American) enPR: sĭl'vər IPA^(key): /ˈsɪl.vɚ/
• Rhymes: -ɪlvə(ɹ)
• Hyphenation: sil‧ver

Noun

silver (countable and uncountable, plural silvers)

2. (uncountable) A lustrous, white, metallic element, atomic number 47, atomic weight 107.87, symbol Ag.

   Synonyms: (alchemy) ☽, ☾

3. (collectively) Coins made from silver or any similar white metal.
4. (collectively) Cutlery and other eating utensils, whether silver or made from some other white metal.
5. (collectively) Any items made from silver or any other white metal.
6. (uncountable) A shiny gray color.

7. (countable) a silver medal
8. Anything resembling silver; something shiny and white.

Synonyms

• (metallic element): argyr-
• (white-metal coins): argyr-
• (cutlery and other eating utensils): silverware
• E174 (when used as a food colouring)

Descendants

• Jamaican Creole: silva
• → Maori: hiriwa
• → Zulu: isiliva

Translations

Adjective

silver (comparative more silver, superlative most silver)

1. Made from silver.
2. Made from another white metal.
3. Having a color like silver: a shiny gray.
4. Denoting the twenty-fifth anniversary, especially of a wedding.
   • 1994, “Mate matching” in Accent on Living, v 38, n 4 (Spring), p 52:

     Mostly, these have been relationships of 10 or less years. However, one respondent has celebrated her silver wedding anniversary.

5. (of commercial services) Premium, but inferior to gold.
6. Pertaining or relating to elderly persons.
7. Having the clear, musical tone of silver; soft and clear in sound.

Synonyms

• (made from silver): silvern (literary)
• (having a color like silver): silvery

Translations

See also

• Appendix:Colors

Verb

silver (third-person singular simple present silvers, present participle silvering, simple past and past participle silvered)

1. To acquire a silvery colour.
2. To cover with silver, or with a silvery metal.

3. To polish like silver; to impart a brightness to, like that of silver.
4. To make hoary, or white, like silver.

Derived terms

References

Further reading

• David Barthelmy (1997–2025) “Silver”, in Webmineral Mineralogy Database.
• “silver”, in Mindat.org‎^[1], Hudson Institute of Mineralogy, 2000–2025.

Anagrams

• Elvirs, levirs, livers, livres, rivels, sliver, svirel

Hunsrik

Etymology

From Middle High German silber, from Old High German silbar, from Proto-West Germanic *silubr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsilva/
• Rhymes: -ilva
• Syllabification: sil‧ver

Adjective

silver

1. silvern

Declension

Further reading

• Online Hunsrik Dictionary

Middle Dutch

Etymology

From Old Dutch silver, from Proto-West Germanic *silubr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈzɪlvər/

Noun

silver n

1. silver

Inflection

This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Descendants

• Dutch: zilver
  • Afrikaans: silwer
  • Negerhollands: silver, zelva, selvu
  • Skepi Creole Dutch: solfer
  • → Caribbean Javanese: silfer
  • → Loup A: sinibat, chinebat, chinibat
  • → Mahican: sehnpatt, senpett
  • → Munsee: shulpul
  • → Sranan Tongo: sorfu, solfru, sorfru
    • → Saramaccan: sólófu, sóófu
  • → Unami: silpël
• Limburgish: zèlver

Further reading

• “silver”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
• Verwijs, E., Verdam, J. (1885–1929) “silver”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN

Middle English

Alternative forms

• selver, sylver, seolver, sulver
• soelver (Herebert)

Etymology

From Old English seolfor, seolofor (“silver”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsilvər/, /ˈsɛlvər/

Noun

silver (plural silvers)

1. silver (metal)

Related terms

• sylveren

Descendants

• English: silver
  • Jamaican Creole: silva
  • → Maori: hiriwa
  • → Zulu: isiliva
• Scots: silver, siller

Old Swedish

Alternative forms

• sylver, sølver

Etymology

From Old Norse silfr, from Proto-Germanic *silubrą.

Noun

silver n

1. silver

Declension

Descendants

• Swedish: silver

Scots

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsɪlvəɹ/

Adjective

silver (not comparable) (Cromarty)

1. Alternative form of siller

Noun

silver (uncountable) (Cromarty)

1. Alternative form of siller

References

• Am Baile (2009) The Cromarty Fisherfolk Dialect‎^[2], Highland Council, page 35

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Swedish silver, from Old Norse silfr, from Proto-Germanic *silubrą.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsɪlvɛr/

Noun

silver n (uncountable)

1. silver
2. silver, coins of silver
3. silver, cutlery of silver
4. a silver medal, for 2nd place in a competition

Declension

Derived terms

References

• silver in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• silver in Svenska Akademiens ordböcker
• silver in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)
• Svensk MeSH