arr

See also: ARR, ärr, árr, and arr.

English

WOTD – 19 September 2016

Etymology 1

Abbreviation

Alternative forms

• arr.

Noun

arr

1. Abbreviation of arrival.

Noun

arr (plural arrs)

1. Abbreviation of arrondissement.

Etymology 2

A 19th-century portrait by John Lewis Marks of the actor C. Pitt dressed as the “Bloodhound of the Bay”, a pirate. Pirates are stereotypically regarded as frequently using the interjection “arr!”

Possibly from aye.

The pirate-imitation form was derived from the West Country dialect after its use by West Country-born actor Robert Newton (1905–1956) in the films Treasure Island (1950) and Blackbeard the Pirate (1952)—and the former’s spin-off media—in which he played, respectively, the fictional pirate Long John Silver and the historical pirate Edward “Blackbeard” Teach (c. 1680 – 1718; also a West Country native).

Alternative forms

• ar

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: är, IPA^(key): /ɑː(ɹ)/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)

pronunciation notes

When imitating a pirate, greater emphasis is often placed on the rhotic sound.

Interjection

arr

1. (British, West Country, West Midlands, Yorkshire) Yes.
2. Used stereotypically in imitation of pirates.
   • 2004, Peter Walsh, How to Organize (Just About) Everything: More than 500 Step-by-Step Instructions for Everything from Organizing Your Closets to Planning a Wedding to Creating a Flawless Filing System, New York, N.Y.: Free Press, →ISBN, instruction 480:

     Arr, matey! Tis a dangerous life, the sea – full of giant beasts, raging storms and wayward ships bobbing around like steel icebergs.

   • 2007, Howard [A.] Norman, Devotion, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin Company, →ISBN, page 90:

     He did an imitation of a pirate: "Arr, Arr, Arr, me buckos."

   • 2008, Gwen Lepkowski, “Tornado”, in Cross-country Treasure Hunt (and the Mystery that Followed), Longwood, Fla.: Xulon Press, →ISBN, page 46:

     Suddenly a pirate voice said, "Arr, Arr, Arr. Are you looking for me gold?" Josh looked startled and Will began to laugh.

Derived terms

• oo arr

Verb

arr (third-person singular simple present arrs, present participle arring, simple past and past participle arred)

1. (rare) To say “arr” like a pirate.

   How do you know someone's a pirate? Because they arr.

   • 2005, “Treasure Island: A New Adaptation by Grace Barnes”, in Theatre Record: The Chronicle of the British Stage, London: Shuttleworth, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 968:

     This distances the audience from the ripping yam element of the story, and for all the sails and stockades which decorate the stage, there are times when the pace drops and the inevitable oo-arring gets a bit coarse. One small pirate in the audience commented that it got a bit boring when they all stood around talking—and he was not entirely wrong.

   • 2011, Sarah Bird, The Gap Year: A Novel, New York, N.Y.: Alfred A. Knopf, ISBN 978-0-307-59279-8; 1st trade paperback edition, New York, N.Y.: Gallery Books, 2012, ISBN 978-1-4516-7876-5, page 9:

     Pirates become a running joke between us. When she was a sophomore, I once served her artichokes, arugula, and arroz con pollo for dinner, and we "arred" our way through the entire meal.

Synonyms

• (yes): ay, aye, ya, yea, yeah, yep, yes, see also Thesaurus:yes
• (pirate): yarr

Etymology 3

Noun

arr (plural arrs)

1. Alternative form of ar; the name of the Latin-script letter R/r.
   • a. 1746 (date written), Jonathan Swift, “On the Irish Club”, in Thomas Sheridan, John Nichols, editors, The Works of the Rev. Jonathan Swift, […], new edition, volume VIII, London: […] J[oseph] Johnson, […], published 1801, →OCLC, page 78:

     Why against printers all this noise? This summoning of blackguard boys? Why so sagacious in your guesses? Your effs, and tees, and arrs, and eſſes? Take my advice; to make you safe, I know a shorter way be half.

See also

• ahoy
• avast
• ay
• be
• booty
• doubloon
• hearty (noun)
• Jolly Roger
• matey
• me (Etymology 2)
• parlay
• peg-leg
• piece of eight
• shiver
• them (determiner)
• Category:en:Nautical
• See also Thesaurus:pirate

Anagrams

• RAR, rar

French

Noun

arr m (plural arrs)

1. Abbreviation of arrondissement.

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From Old Norse ærr, ørr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɑrː/

Noun

arr n (definite singular arret, indefinite plural arr, definite plural arra or arrene)

1. a scar

Derived terms

• arrdelfin

References

• “arr” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Alternative forms

• ær

Etymology

From Old Norse ærr, ørr.

Noun

arr n (definite singular arret, indefinite plural arr, definite plural arra)

1. a scar

Derived terms

• arrdelfin

References

• “arr” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Swedish

Etymology

Clipping of arrangemang.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /arː/

Noun

arr n

1. (music, colloquial) musical arrangement

Declension

Declension of arr

		nominative	genitive
singular	indefinite	arr	arrs
	definite	arret	arrets
plural	indefinite	arr	arrs
	definite	arren	arrens

Related terms

• arra

References

• arr in Svensk ordbok (SO)

Anagrams

• rar

Tarao

Noun

arr

1. Alternative form of arte (chicken).

References

• 2001, Encyclopaedia of northeast India, volume 3, →ISBN, page 230:

Tarifit

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Verb

arr (Tifinagh spelling ⴰⵔⵔ)

1. (transitive) to return, to restore
2. (transitive) to put back
3. (transitive) to give back
4. (transitive) to reply
5. (transitive) to soothe, quench
6. (transitive) to vomit
7. (transitive) to turn into, to become, to transform
8. (transitive) to close
9. (transitive) to plant, to replant

Conjugation

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Derived terms

• Verbal noun: twarrit (“returning”)
• Passive: twarr (“to be returned”)
• tamraryut (“cover”)
• trarit (“vomiting”)