ere

Plural: eres

Adv

At an earlier time.

Prep

Before; sooner than.

Conj

before.

Noun

Obsolete form of ear.

Contraction

A contraction of is, there, and the indefinite article. Mainly used in questions.

General

Before (poetic or archaic usage).

Examples

'Ere bit o' bacon in it, Kathleen?
Ere the final tile was drawn, she knew her opponent had secured the win.

Origin / Etymology

From Middle English er, from Old English ǣr (adverb, conjunction, and preposition), from Proto-West Germanic *airi, from Proto-Germanic *airiz, comparative of Proto-Germanic *airi (“early”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éyeri (“day, morning”) (compare Avestan 𐬀𐬫𐬀𐬭 (ayar, “day”), Gk. ἠέριος (ēérios, “at daybreak”), see also era, Albanian herët (“early in the morning, at daybreak”) ). The adverb erstwhile retains the Old English superlative ǣrest (“earliest”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian eer (“before”), Dutch eer (“before, sooner than”), German ehe (“before”).

Scrabble Score: 3

ere: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
ere: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
ere: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 3

ere: valid Words With Friends Word