morse

See also: Morse and morsë

English

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /mɔːs/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔːs

Etymology 1

From Middle French mors, from Latin morsus (“bite; clasp”), from mordere (“to bite”).

Noun

morse (plural morses)

1. A clasp or fastening used to fasten a cope in the front, usually decorative. [from 15th c.]
   • 1891, Oscar Wilde, chapter XI, in The Picture of Dorian Gray, London, New York, N.Y., Melbourne, Vic.: Ward Lock & Co., →OCLC:

     The morse bore a seraph's head in gold-thread raised work.

Etymology 2

Uncertain. Compare Russian морж (morž, “walrus”), Sami morša, Finnish mursu (all attested later).

Noun

morse (plural morses)

1. (now rare) A walrus. [from 15th c.]
   • 1829, [Robert Pearse Gillies], “The Voyage. (Continued.)”, in Tales of a Voyager to the Arctic Ocean. […] (Second Series), volume III, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 66:

     The morse is said to roar or bellow loudly, but the animal we slew made no outcry, [...]

   • 1880, Clements R Markham, editor, The Voyages of William Baffin, 1612-1622, published 1881:

     Then we passed through a great deale of small ice, and sawe, upon some peices, two morses, and upon some, one; and also diuers seales, layeing upon peices of ice.

Anagrams

• s'more, moser, meros, somer, smore, Somer, moers, Moser, omers, mores, mesor, Romes, Mores

Breton

Adverb

morse

1. never

Synonyms

• nepred

Related terms

• biken

Dutch

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Verb

morse

1. (dated or formal) singular present subjunctive of morsen

Anagrams

• smore

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mɔʁs/

• Audio (Paris):

  (file)

Etymology 1

From Russian морж (morž), from Northern Sami.

Noun

morse m (plural morses)

1. walrus

See also

• otarie f
• phoque m

Etymology 2

Noun

morse m (uncountable)

1. Morse code

Further reading

• “morse”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Anagrams

• mores

Italian

Etymology 1

Noun

morse f

1. plural of morsa

Etymology 2

Verb

morse

1. third-person singular past historic of mordere

Etymology 3

Participle

morse f pl

1. feminine plural of morso

Anagrams

• merso, sermo

Latin

Participle

morse

1. vocative masculine singular of morsus

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology 1

From English Morse, after the American inventor Samuel Morse.

Noun

morse m (definite singular morsen) (uncountable)

1. Morse or Morse code

Synonyms

• morsealfabet

Derived terms

• morsenøkkel

Verb

morse (imperative mors, present tense morser, simple past and past participle morsa or morset)

1. (sende morse) to transmit Morse code

Etymology 2

From mors (“corpse”).

Verb

morse (imperative mors, present tense morser, simple past and past participle morsa or morset)

1. to die

Usage notes

Using morse to signify die instead of the more common dø is a special usage found among health workers. The use of the term in this way is unknown in the general population.

References

• “morse” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Alternative forms

• morsa (a infinitive)

Etymology

From English Morse, named after Samuel Morse (1791–1872).

Noun

morse m (definite singular morsen, uncountable)

1. Morse code

Derived terms

• morsealfabet
• morsekode

Verb

morse (present tense morsar, past tense morsa, past participle morsa, passive infinitive morsast, present participle morsande, imperative morse/mors)

1. to transmit Morse code

References

• “morse” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French morse.

Noun

morse n (uncountable)

1. Morse code

Declension

singular only	indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	morse	morseul
genitive-dative	morse	morseului
vocative	morseule

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Swedish morghons. From morgon + -s (“adverbial suffix”). Compare the development of afse (from afton).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /²mɔrse/

Adverb

morse

1. adverbial genitive form of morgon; a past morning

Usage notes

• Only found in the expression i morse (“the morning of today”), and related expressions, e.g. i går morse (”yesterday morning”), i måndags morse (”last Monday morning”).

See also

• afse