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Added 9 October 2026

under

/ˈʌndə/ adjective

In Latin: sub Wiktionary

adjective Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about under at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Located below or beneath something else.
nether garments
Lower in rank, power, or authority.
an under secretary

adverb

Down to defeat, death, or ruin.
their competitors went under
Through a range downward.
children six and under will be admitted free
Into unconsciousness.
this will put the patient under

Origin

From Middle English under, from Old English under, from Proto-West Germanic *undar, from Proto-Germanic *under, from a merger of Proto-Indo-European *(H)n̥dʰér (“under”) and *h₁entér (“inside”). Cognate with German unter, Dutch onder, Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish under, Faroese and Icelandic undir; also Old High German untar (“under”), Sanskrit अन्तर् (antar, “within”), Latin infrā (“below, beneath”) and inter (“between, among”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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