Added 8 October 2026
jeer
/d͡ʒɪə/ noun
In Latin: cavillor Wiktionary
noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about jeer at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
- A mocking remark or reflection.
verb
noun
- A gear; a tackle.
- An assemblage or combination of tackles, for hoisting or lowering the yards of a ship.
Origin
From earlier gyr, probably from Dutch gieren (“to roar with laughter, laugh loudly”) (related to German gieren (“to gape, snap”)); or from Dutch gekscheren (“to jeer”, literally “to shear the fool”), from gek (“a fool”) (see geck) + scheren (“to shear”) (see shear (verb)). The OED states no verifiable connection to English cheer.
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)