51³Ô¹Ï

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View synonyms for

burr

1

[ bur ]

noun

  1. Also a protruding, ragged edge raised on the surface of metal during drilling, shearing, punching, or engraving.
  2. a rough or irregular protuberance on any object, as on a tree.
  3. a small, handheld, power-driven milling cutter, used by machinists and die makers for deepening, widening, or undercutting small recesses.
  4. a lump of brick fused or warped in firing.

verb (used with object)

  1. to form a rough point or edge on.

burr

2
or bur

[ bur ]

noun

  1. a washer placed at the head of a rivet.
  2. a blank punched out of a piece of sheet metal.

burr

3

[ bur ]

noun

  1. a pronunciation of the r- sound as a uvular trill, as in certain Northern English dialects.
  2. a pronunciation of the r- sound as an alveolar flap or trill, as in Scottish English.
  3. any pronunciation popularly considered rough or nonurban.
  4. a whirring noise.

verb (used without object)

  1. to speak with a burr.
  2. to speak roughly, indistinctly, or inarticulately.
  3. to make a whirring sound.

verb (used with object)

  1. to pronounce (words, sounds, etc.) with a burr.

burr

4
or buhr

[ bur ]

noun

Burr

5

[ bur ]

noun

  1. Aaron, 1756–1836, vice president of the U.S. 1801–05.

Burr

1

/ ²úÉœË /

noun

  1. BurrAaron17561836MUSPOLITICS: statesman Aaron . 1756–1836, US vice-president (1800–04), who fled after killing a political rival in a duel and plotted to create an independent empire in the western US; acquitted (1807) of treason
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged†2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

burr

2

/ ²úÉœË /

noun

  1. a small power-driven hand-operated rotary file, esp for removing burrs or for machining recesses
  2. a rough edge left on a workpiece after cutting, drilling, etc
  3. a rough or irregular protuberance, such as a burl on a tree
  4. a burl on the trunk or root of a tree, sliced across for use as decorative veneer
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged†2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. a variant spelling of bur
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged†2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. to form a rough edge on (a workpiece)
  2. to remove burrs from (a workpiece) by grinding, filing, etc; deburr
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged†2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

burr

3

/ ²úÉœË /

noun

  1. phonetics an articulation of (r) characteristic of certain English dialects, esp the uvular fricative trill of Northumberland or the retroflex r of the West of England
  2. a whirring sound
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged†2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. to pronounce (words) with a burr
  2. to make a whirring sound
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged†2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

burr

4

/ ²úÉœË /

noun

  1. a washer fitting around the end of a rivet
  2. a blank punched out of sheet metal
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged†2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

burr

5

/ ²úÉœË /

noun

  1. short for buhrstone
  2. a mass of hard siliceous rock surrounded by softer rock
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged†2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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51³Ô¹Ï History and Origins

Origin of burr1

First recorded in 1605–15; spelling variant of bur 1

Origin of burr2

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English burrewez (plural), buruhe “circle,†variant of brough “round towerâ€; broch

Origin of burr3

First recorded in 1750–60; apparently both imitative and associative, the sound being thought of as rough like a bur

Origin of burr4

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English burre, probably so called from its roughness
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51³Ô¹Ï History and Origins

Origin of burr1

C14: variant of bur

Origin of burr2

C18: either special use of bur (in the sense: rough sound) or of imitative origin

Origin of burr3

C16 (in the sense: broad ring on a spear): variant of burrow (in obsolete sense: borough )

Origin of burr4

C18: probably from bur , from its qualities of roughness
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

The following year, his balloon burst a mile above the ground in Virginia, and his re-attempt at the flight saw him wrecked among burr chestnut trees and almost killed.

From

A longtime champion of the oppressed, and a burr to the powerful.

From

“Should you have a smile on your face coming to the rink? Absolutely. Should you have a little burr in your saddle every night as the puck drops? Yeah, for sure.â€

From

When my countertop burr grinder broke, I picked up this slender, portable grinder from my local coffee shop: It turns out it’s a keeper!

From

I think he was brought in as a burr that we remember in Ethan’s shoe.

From

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