here meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

here

adv

UK /ˈhɪə̯/ · CA, US /ˈhɪɚ̯/

Etymology From Middle English her, from Old English hēr (“at this place”), from Proto-West Germanic *hēr, from Proto-Germanic *hē₂r, from *hiz + *-r, from Proto-Indo-European *kís, from *ḱe + *ís. Cognates Cognate with Saterland Frisian hier, West Frisian hjir, Dutch hier, German Low German hier, German hier, Danish her, Swedish här, Norwegian her, Faroese her, Icelandic hér. Also related to the English pronoun he (“this/that person”), and the words hither (“to this place”) and hence (“from this place”).

8 senses

1In, on, or at this place (a place perceived to be close…
2At this point or stage (in a process, argument, narration, etc.)
3In this matter.
4Notionally at the speaker's location by virtue of happening now.
5In this context.
6After the name of a person perceived as located close to…
7After certain determiners, especially 'this' and…
8To this place; used in place of the literary or archaic hither.

1

Location In, on, or at this place (a place perceived to be close to the speaker); compare there.

You wait here while I fetch my coat.
Ms. Doe is not here at the moment.

4 more examples

It says here that he died in 1970.
The air here is foul.
The view up here is better than the view down there!
Here is the report that you asked for.

2

Location Abstract At this point or stage (in a process, argument, narration, etc.)

I've had enough of peeling potatoes. I'm stopping here.
Here endeth the lesson.

2 more examples

Here, perhaps I ought to stop.1796, George Washington, Washington's Farewell Address:
“And drove away—away.” Sophia broke down here. Even at this moment she was subconsciously comparing her rendering of the part of the forlorn bride with Miss Marie Lohr's.1921, Ben Travers, chapter 6, in A Cuckoo in the Nest, Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Page & Company, published 1925, →OCLC:

3

Location Abstract In this matter.

You say that all men are born equal, but here I must disagree with you.

4

Location As complement of 'be' Notionally at the speaker's location by virtue of happening now.

Flu season is here.
Christmas will soon be here.

5

Location Abstract In this context.

Derivatives can refer to anything that is derived from something else, but here they refer specifically to functions that give the slope of the tangent line to a curve.
The two great generalizations which the veteran Belgian astronomer has brought to bear on physiological and mental science, and which it is proposed to describe popularly here, may be briefly defined:1872 May, Edward Burnett Tylor, “Quetelet on the Science of Man”, in Popular Science Monthly, volume 1:

1 more example

The briefest characterization is all that will be attempted here.1904 January 15, William James, “The Chicago School”, in Psychological Bulletin, 1.1, pages 1-5:

6

Location Informal After the name of a person perceived as located close to the speaker, used familiarly to indicate that person.

Jim here has been with the company for twenty years.

7

Location Dialectal, Informal After certain determiners, especially 'this' and 'these', used to emphasise demonstrative sense; see also this here.

This here orange is too sour.
Both 'ere buckets 'ave 'oles in 'em.

8

Location To this place; used in place of the literary or archaic hither.

Please come here.
He said we came here solely on my account, that I was to have perfect rest and all the air I could get.1891, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, The Yellow Wall-Paper:

Derived terms: 95 terms
abandon hope, all ye who enter here, all hope abandon ye who enter here, be here for, come-here, come here to me, does anyone here speak English, do you come here often, fancy seeing you here, for here, here on in, here on out, here to Sunday, get out of here, get outta here, have had it up to here, have here, hereabout, hereabove, hereafter, hereagainst, hereamong, here and now, here and there, here and yonder, hereat, hereaway, here be dragons, here below, hereby, here comes the aeroplane, here comes the airplane, here comes the plane, here document, herefor, herefore, here for it, herefrom, heregeld, here goes, here goes nothing, herehence, herein, hereinabove, hereinafter, hereinbefore, hereinbelow, hereish, here lies, hereness, hereof, hereon, hereout, here-script, here-text, here, there and everywhere, hereto, heretofore, heretog, here to stay, hereunder, hereunto, hereupon, here we are, here we go, here we go again, herewith, herewithin, here you are, here you go, I just work here, I'm here all week, in the here and now, I only work here, is anyone here a doctor, is anyone sitting here, is it safe here, Kilroy was here, look here, my eyes are up here, neither here nor there, not here for a haircut, not here to fuck spiders, nothing to see here, not invented here, over here, same here, somebody's in here, the buck stops here, this here, true as I'm standing here, true as I stand here, up here, up to here, you must be new here, your money is no good here

here

adj

Etymology From Middle English her, from Old English hēr (“at this place”), from Proto-West Germanic *hēr, from Proto-Germanic *hē₂r, from *hiz + *-r, from Proto-Indo-European *kís, from *ḱe + *ís. Cognates Cognate with Saterland Frisian hier, West Frisian hjir, Dutch hier, German Low German hier, German hier, Danish her, Swedish här, Norwegian her, Faroese her, Icelandic hér. Also related to the English pronoun he (“this/that person”), and the words hither (“to this place”) and hence (“from this place”).

1

Alive

I'm not dead yet! I'm still here!

here

noun

Etymology From Middle English her, from Old English hēr (“at this place”), from Proto-West Germanic *hēr, from Proto-Germanic *hē₂r, from *hiz + *-r, from Proto-Indo-European *kís, from *ḱe + *ís. Cognates Cognate with Saterland Frisian hier, West Frisian hjir, Dutch hier, German Low German hier, German hier, Danish her, Swedish här, Norwegian her, Faroese her, Icelandic hér. Also related to the English pronoun he (“this/that person”), and the words hither (“to this place”) and hence (“from this place”).

1

Usually This place; this location.

Here is where I met my spouse twelve years ago.
An Alzheimer patient's here may in his mind be anywhere he called home in the time he presently re-lives.

3 more examples

For time and extension seem continuous elements; the here is one space with the other heres round it1922, Francis Herbert Bradley, The Principles of Logic, page 52:
More than ever, the here is porous.2001, Kauhiko Yatabe, “Objects, city and wandering: the invisibility of the Japanese in France”, in Harumi Befu, Sylvie Guichard-Anguis, editors, Globalizing Japan: Ethnography of the Japanese Presence in Asia, Europe, and America, page 28:
We can't see it because it is an aspect of our seeing, it is a function of our gaze: the field of the here is established in — and by — our presence.2004, Denis Wood, Five Billion Years of Global Change: A History of the Land, page 20:

2

Figuratively, Usually This point or stage in time, conceptualised as a location.

I'd like to continue my story, but here is where I must stop.
I've done as much as I can; you'll have to take it from here.

3

Abstract, Usually This time, the present situation.

here

intj

Etymology From Middle English her, from Old English hēr (“at this place”), from Proto-West Germanic *hēr, from Proto-Germanic *hē₂r, from *hiz + *-r, from Proto-Indo-European *kís, from *ḱe + *ís. Cognates Cognate with Saterland Frisian hier, West Frisian hjir, Dutch hier, German Low German hier, German hier, Danish her, Swedish här, Norwegian her, Faroese her, Icelandic hér. Also related to the English pronoun he (“this/that person”), and the words hither (“to this place”) and hence (“from this place”).

1

Slang Used semi-assertively to offer something to the listener.

Here, now I'm giving it to you.

2

Ireland, UK, Slang Used for emphasis at the beginning of a sentence when expressing an opinion or want.

Here, I'm tired and I want a drink.

3

Informal Used to attract someone's attention, often in a hostile way.

Here! You! Stop doing that!

4

Said in response to one's name being called during a roll call, indicating that one is present.

Smith ... Here! ... Jones ... Here! ... Walters ... ... Anyone seen Walters?

5

Said to command a person or higher animal to come to the speaker.

"Fido! Here!" — "Woof! Woof!"

Related terms: hence, here-, hereabouts, hither, there