other

adj, noun, det and 2 more — 11 senses

other

adj

UK /ˈʌðə/ · US /ˈʌðɚ/

Etymology

From Middle English other, from Old English ōþer (“other, second”), from Proto-West Germanic *ą̄þar, *anþar, from Proto-Germanic *anþeraz (“other, second”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂énteros (“other”). Cognate with Scots uther, ither (“other”), Old Frisian ōther, ("other"; > North Frisian ouder, öler, üđer, Saterland Frisian uur, West Frisian oar), Old Saxon ōthar, ("other"; > Low German anner), Old Dutch āthar, ("other"; > Afrikaans ander, Dutch ander), Old High German andar, ("other"; > Cimbrian andar, German ander, anderer, Luxembourgish aner, Mòcheno ònder, Yiddish אַנדער (ander)), Old Norse annarr, ("other"; > Danish anden, Faroese annar, Icelandic annar, Jamtish æðnen, ænnen, Norwegian Bokmål annen, Norwegian Nynorsk annan, Swedish annan), Gothic 𐌰𐌽𐌸𐌰𐍂 (anþar, “other”), Old Prussian anters, antars (“other, second”), Lithuanian antroks (“other”, pronoun), Latvian otrs, otrais (“second”), Macedonian втор (vtor, “second”), Albanian ndërroj (“to change; to switch; to alternate”), Sanskrit अन्त॑र (ántara, “different”). French autre, Spanish otro, Portuguese outro, etc., all from Latin alter, are false cognates. A true cognate would be Latin anterior.

1

See other (determiner) below.

  • Pick up the phone and find out who's on the other end.
2

Second.

  • I get paid every other week.
3

Formal Alien.

  • In Matthew's account, the law remains intact, as does virtually everything except that critical belief in Jesus as the Messiah (obviously no small thing), and this is not enough to make Matthew completely other from its Jewish origins.2010 April 20, anonymous author, “Letters”, in Christian Century, volume 127, number 8, page 6:
4

Different.

Formal or puristic

  • it is inherent, rather, in the revolutionary attempt of the West to externalize the idea of a source of meaning wholly other than what is embodied in human conventions and hierarchies.2001 Fall, Ralph C. Hancock, “The Modern Revolution and the Collapse of Moral Analogy: Tocqueville and Guizot.”, in Perspectives on Political Science, volume 30, number 4, page 213:
5

Obsolete Left, as opposed to right.

  • A diſtaffe in her other hand ſhe had, / Vpon the which ſhe litle ſpinnes, but ſpils, / And faynes to weaue falſe tales and leaſings bad, / To throw amongſt the good, which others had diſprad.1596, Edmund Spenser, “Book V, Canto XII”, in The Faerie Queene. […], part II (books IV–VI), London: […] [Richard Field] for William Ponsonby, →OCLC, stanza 36, page 351:
Derived terms
118 termsall other things being equal, among other things, any other business, bat for the other side, bat for the other team, crawl over each other, deother, each other, every other, fictional other, give with one hand and take away with the other, go in at one ear and at out the other, go in one ear and out the other, have other fish to fry, have other ideas, how the other half lives, in other news, in other words, kick with the other foot, laugh on the other side of one's face, laugh out of the other side of one's mouth, like no other, look the other way, made for each other, none other than, nonother, one after the other, one that goes the other way, one way or other, one way or the other, on the other bus, on the other hand, on the other paw, on the other side of, otherable, other backward class, otherdimensional, otherdom, other end, other end of the ball, other fishes in the sea, other fish in the sea, other half, other head, otherhearted, otherhood, otherish, otherkin, otherlandish, otherling, other lips, otherly, other man, othermother, otherness, other rank, other-sex, other-sexual, other side, other side of the coin, other side of the tracks, othersome, other some, other-space, other specified dissociative disorder, other then, other things being equal, other times, other virginity, otherward, otherwards, otherways, otherwhat, otherwhen, otherwhence, otherwhere, otherwhereas, otherwhile, other woman, Otherworld, other world, otherworld, other-worldliness, other-worldly, pull the other leg, pull the other one, put one foot in front of the other, put the shoe on the other foot, should see the other guy, significant other, somehow or other, somehow or the other, some something or other, some something or the other, something or other, something or the other, the apples on the other side of the wall are the sweetest, the boot is on the other foot, the grass is always greener on the other side, the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence, the grass is always greener on the other side of the road, the other body, the other day, the other place, the other way, the other way around, the other way round, the other white meat, The Other Wiki, the shoe is on the other foot, think with one's other head, this and that and the other, turn the other cheek, turn the other way, wait for the other shoe to drop, wet the other eye, your other left, your other right

other

noun
Etymology

From Middle English other, from Old English ōþer (“other, second”), from Proto-West Germanic *ą̄þar, *anþar, from Proto-Germanic *anþeraz (“other, second”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂énteros (“other”). Cognate with Scots uther, ither (“other”), Old Frisian ōther, ("other"; > North Frisian ouder, öler, üđer, Saterland Frisian uur, West Frisian oar), Old Saxon ōthar, ("other"; > Low German anner), Old Dutch āthar, ("other"; > Afrikaans ander, Dutch ander), Old High German andar, ("other"; > Cimbrian andar, German ander, anderer, Luxembourgish aner, Mòcheno ònder, Yiddish אַנדער (ander)), Old Norse annarr, ("other"; > Danish anden, Faroese annar, Icelandic annar, Jamtish æðnen, ænnen, Norwegian Bokmål annen, Norwegian Nynorsk annan, Swedish annan), Gothic 𐌰𐌽𐌸𐌰𐍂 (anþar, “other”), Old Prussian anters, antars (“other, second”), Lithuanian antroks (“other”, pronoun), Latvian otrs, otrais (“second”), Macedonian втор (vtor, “second”), Albanian ndërroj (“to change; to switch; to alternate”), Sanskrit अन्त॑र (ántara, “different”). French autre, Spanish otro, Portuguese outro, etc., all from Latin alter, are false cognates. A true cognate would be Latin anterior.

1

An other, another (person, etc), more often rendered as another.

  • I'm afraid little Robbie does not always play well with others.
  • Show me one other.
2

The other one; the second of two.

  • One boat is not better than the other.
  • Why not tell one or other of your parents?
2 more examples
  • Study gives strength to the mind; conversation, grace: the first apt to give stiffness, the other suppleness: one gives substance and form to the statue, the other polishes it.1699, William Temple, Heads designed for an essay on conversations:
  • He had one hand on the bounce bottle—and he'd never let go of that since he got back to the table—but he had a handkerchief in the other and was swabbing his deadlights with it.1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter VI, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y.; London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC:
Derived terms
others

other

det
Etymology

From Middle English other, from Old English ōþer (“other, second”), from Proto-West Germanic *ą̄þar, *anþar, from Proto-Germanic *anþeraz (“other, second”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂énteros (“other”). Cognate with Scots uther, ither (“other”), Old Frisian ōther, ("other"; > North Frisian ouder, öler, üđer, Saterland Frisian uur, West Frisian oar), Old Saxon ōthar, ("other"; > Low German anner), Old Dutch āthar, ("other"; > Afrikaans ander, Dutch ander), Old High German andar, ("other"; > Cimbrian andar, German ander, anderer, Luxembourgish aner, Mòcheno ònder, Yiddish אַנדער (ander)), Old Norse annarr, ("other"; > Danish anden, Faroese annar, Icelandic annar, Jamtish æðnen, ænnen, Norwegian Bokmål annen, Norwegian Nynorsk annan, Swedish annan), Gothic 𐌰𐌽𐌸𐌰𐍂 (anþar, “other”), Old Prussian anters, antars (“other, second”), Lithuanian antroks (“other”, pronoun), Latvian otrs, otrais (“second”), Macedonian втор (vtor, “second”), Albanian ndërroj (“to change; to switch; to alternate”), Sanskrit अन्त॑र (ántara, “different”). French autre, Spanish otro, Portuguese outro, etc., all from Latin alter, are false cognates. A true cognate would be Latin anterior.

1

Not the one or ones previously referred to.

  • Earning less than $2,000 a month, I have no other source of income except for gifts from relatives.
  • The Celebrity, by arts unknown, induced Mrs. Judge Short and two other ladies to call at Mohair on a certain afternoon when Mr. Cooke was trying a trotter on the track. The three returned wondering and charmed with Mrs. Cooke; they were sure she had had no hand in the furnishing of that atrocious house.1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter IV, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC, page 58:
3 more examples
  • “[…] the awfully hearty sort of Christmas cards that people do send to other people that they don't know at all well. You know. The kind that have mottoes like Here's rattling good luck and roaring good cheer, / With lashings of food and great hogsheads of beer. […]”1921, Ben Travers, chapter 1, in A Cuckoo in the Nest, Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Page & Company, published 1925, →OCLC:
  • “By the way,” Jessamy went on, “what’s your other name? You never told me.” “Stubbs,” said Billy, “William Stubbs!”.1967, Barbara Sleigh, Jessamy, Sevenoaks, Kent: Bloomsbury, published 1993, →ISBN, page 98:
  • [Rural solar plant] schemes are of little help to industry or other heavy users of electricity. Nor is solar power yet as cheap as the grid. For all that, the rapid arrival of electric light to Indian villages is long overdue. When the national grid suffers its next huge outage, as it did in July 2012 when hundreds of millions were left in the dark, look for specks of light in the villages.2013 July 20, “Out of the gloom”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8845:
Antonyms
same
Derived terms
this, that, and the other

other

adv
Etymology

From Middle English other, from Old English ōþer (“other, second”), from Proto-West Germanic *ą̄þar, *anþar, from Proto-Germanic *anþeraz (“other, second”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂énteros (“other”). Cognate with Scots uther, ither (“other”), Old Frisian ōther, ("other"; > North Frisian ouder, öler, üđer, Saterland Frisian uur, West Frisian oar), Old Saxon ōthar, ("other"; > Low German anner), Old Dutch āthar, ("other"; > Afrikaans ander, Dutch ander), Old High German andar, ("other"; > Cimbrian andar, German ander, anderer, Luxembourgish aner, Mòcheno ònder, Yiddish אַנדער (ander)), Old Norse annarr, ("other"; > Danish anden, Faroese annar, Icelandic annar, Jamtish æðnen, ænnen, Norwegian Bokmål annen, Norwegian Nynorsk annan, Swedish annan), Gothic 𐌰𐌽𐌸𐌰𐍂 (anþar, “other”), Old Prussian anters, antars (“other, second”), Lithuanian antroks (“other”, pronoun), Latvian otrs, otrais (“second”), Macedonian втор (vtor, “second”), Albanian ndërroj (“to change; to switch; to alternate”), Sanskrit अन्त॑र (ántara, “different”). French autre, Spanish otro, Portuguese outro, etc., all from Latin alter, are false cognates. A true cognate would be Latin anterior.

1

Obsolete Otherwise.

  • I durst, my lord, to wager she is honest, Lay down my soul at state; if you think other, Remove your thought;c. 1603–1604 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Othello, the Moore of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene ii], page 331, column 1:
  • Weigh also, the pretty escape of the disguised attempt of the party that seemed to be in so great peril, who can believe other, then that it was a made matter, to continue a belief, whom they think they have inchaunted at their wills.1655, The Compleat Ambassador or two treatises of the intended marriage of Queen Elizabeth of glorious memory, page 321:
1 more example
  • That he knew from Monsieur Meerman, I had been the occasion of giving him any Credit in England of an honest sincere Man, and he would never lose mine upon that occasion by giving the King Cause to believe other of him.1740, William Temple, Letters written by Sir William Temple, bart., and other ministers of state, both at home and abroad, page 184:
Related terms
another, other than, otherwise

other

verb
Etymology

From Middle English other, from Old English ōþer (“other, second”), from Proto-West Germanic *ą̄þar, *anþar, from Proto-Germanic *anþeraz (“other, second”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂énteros (“other”). Cognate with Scots uther, ither (“other”), Old Frisian ōther, ("other"; > North Frisian ouder, öler, üđer, Saterland Frisian uur, West Frisian oar), Old Saxon ōthar, ("other"; > Low German anner), Old Dutch āthar, ("other"; > Afrikaans ander, Dutch ander), Old High German andar, ("other"; > Cimbrian andar, German ander, anderer, Luxembourgish aner, Mòcheno ònder, Yiddish אַנדער (ander)), Old Norse annarr, ("other"; > Danish anden, Faroese annar, Icelandic annar, Jamtish æðnen, ænnen, Norwegian Bokmål annen, Norwegian Nynorsk annan, Swedish annan), Gothic 𐌰𐌽𐌸𐌰𐍂 (anþar, “other”), Old Prussian anters, antars (“other, second”), Lithuanian antroks (“other”, pronoun), Latvian otrs, otrais (“second”), Macedonian втор (vtor, “second”), Albanian ndërroj (“to change; to switch; to alternate”), Sanskrit अन्त॑र (ántara, “different”). French autre, Spanish otro, Portuguese outro, etc., all from Latin alter, are false cognates. A true cognate would be Latin anterior.

1

To regard, label, or treat as an "other", as not part of the same group; to view as different and alien.

  • "Rican" is code for its homonym, "redskin," through which they othered this non-Mexican ethnic group.2005, Kristen A. Myers, Racetalk: racism hiding in plain sight:
  • That is, whilst Lesfest organisers are othering women who are not born female (thus producing a kind of lesbian-normativity), the Australian WOMAN Network is othering women who have not had surgical sex reassignment (thus producing a kind of "trans-normativity").2006, Angela Pattatucci Aragon, Challenging lesbian norms:
3 more examples
  • […] and Black males have not taken her seriously politically (gender); and the color of her skin has marginalized her (race and "othered" her when compared with White women, who have also worked to silence her political views.2008, John F. Borland, The under-representation of Black females in NCAA Division I women's basketball head coaching positions, University of Connecticut:
  • Others with admitted addictions are Othered and sadly, forever stigmatized.2010, Ronald L. Jackson, I, Encyclopedia of Identity:
  • “You’re coming here and you’re expecting that everybody’s Black, so I’m going to be OK,” Ms. Davis said. “But then you get here and then you’re being ‘othered’” — viewed as different and separate.2024 February 16, Colette Coleman, “Blaxit: Tired of Racism, Black Americans Try Life in Africa”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC:
2

To treat as different or separate; segregate; ostracise.

  • In this scenario, the young lady who had spoken had been othered by her peers and her response to my question had been dismissed as invalid despite the fact that she was alright.2007, Christopher Emdin, City University of New York. Urban Education, Exploring the contexts of urban science classrooms
Derived terms
otherer, othering, otherization, otherize, unothered

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.