▪ I. † rear, n.1 Obs.—1
[variant of reere.]
A crash, peal.
| 1584 Hudson Du Bartas' Judith ii. in Sylvester's Du Bartas ii. (1621) 702 At this Hebrew's prayer such a reare Of thunder fell that brought them all in feare. |
▪ II. † rear, n.2 Obs. rare.
[f. rear v.1]
That which is reared or got (from cattle).
| a 1618 Raleigh Anc. Tenures Wks. 1829 VIII. 608 Fructus not only comprehends cattle, with their wool and milk, but the rear, and that which cometh from them. Ibid. 615 The wool, or milk, or rear of them. |
▪ III. rear, n.3 (and a.1)
(rɪə(r))
Also 7 reer, reare, (9) rere.
[Aphetic form of arrear n., prob. originating in the rear for th' arrear, or under the influence of rear-guard, rear-ward.
The form became current in the 17th c.; an app. instance in R. Brunne's Chron. (1810) 204 is no doubt to be taken as elliptical for rereward.]
I. 1. a. Mil. (and Naval). The hindmost portion of an army (or fleet); that division of a force which is placed, or moves, last in order. (In later use tending to pass into sense 2.)
| 1606 Shakes. Tr. & Cr. iii. iii. 162 Like a gallant Horse falne in first ranke, Lie there for pavement to the abject reare [conj. for neere]. 1629 Donne Devotions Expost. xvi. 380 When an Army marches, the vaunt may lodge to night, where the Reare comes not till to morrow. 1667 Milton P.L. ii. 78 When the fierce Foe hung on our brok'n Rear Insulting. 1684 Scanderbeg Rediv. vi. 137 One great Detachment following the Imperial Army fell upon their Reer. 1732 T. Lediard Sethos II. x. 372 The cavalry..soon overtook the enemy's rear. 1769 Falconer Dict. Marine (1780), Rear, a name given to the last division of a squadron, or the last squadron of a fleet. 1790 Beatson Nav. & Mil. Mem. I. 190 Expecting that the van of the enemy would necessarily come to the assistance of their rear. 1802 James Milit. Dict., Rear of an Army,..Generally the third component part of a large body of forces, which consists of an advanced guard, a main body and a rear guard. 1876 Voyle & Stevenson Milit. Dict. 330/1 A detachment of troops which brings up and protects the rear of an army. |
b. fig. and in fig. context.
| 1629 Donne Devotions Expost. xvi. 381 That [bell] which rung to day was to bring him in his reare, in his body, to the Church. 1632 Milton L'Allegro 50 While the Cock..Scatters the rear of darkness. 1671 ― Samson 1577 The first-born bloom of spring Nipt with the lagging rear of winters frost. 1821 Shelley Hellas 339 That shattered flag of fiery cloud Which leads the rear of the departing day. |
2. a. The back (as opposed to the front) of an army, camp, or person; also, the space behind or at the back; the position at or towards the back.
| 1600 Edmonds Obs. Cæsar's Comm., Mod. Training, When the whole Battalion being in their close order shoulde turne about and make the Rere the Front. 1651 N. Bacon Disc. Govt. Eng. ii. i. 4 The King was advised to give place,..till he had tryed masteries with Scotland, and thereby secured his Rere. 1663 Butler Hud. i. iii. 76 His rear was suddenly inclos'd, And no room left him for retreat. 1735 Somerville Chase iii. 536 He stands at Bay against yon knotty Trunk That covers well his Rear. 1796 Instr. & Reg. Cavalry (1813) 93 The Divisions marching through each other from Rear to Front. 1838 Thirlwall Greece IV. xxxiv. 334 The rear, as the post of danger, he claimed for Timasion and himself. 1847 Infantry Man. (1854) 40 They will carry their right foot..diagonally to their right rear. 1888 P. H. Sheridan Personal Mem. II. 37 Crook..conducted his command south in two parallel columns until he gained the rear of the enemy's works. |
b. The buttocks or backside. colloq.
| 1796 True Briton 26 Oct. 3/3 Lord Camelford can boast of a power which rivals that of the First Lord of the Admiralty. He has made Captain Couver a yellow rear. 1851 H. Melville Moby Dick I. xxi. 159 He put his hand upon the sleeper's rear. 1876 ‘Mark Twain’ Adv. Tom Sawyer ii. 28 In another moment he was flying down the street with his pail and a tingling rear.., and Aunt Polly was retiring from the field with a slipper in her hand. 1949 N. R. Nash Young & Fair i. ii. 16 Just once is enough, Baby. (She slaps her on the rear) Come on—get to work. 1965 H. Gold Man who was not with It vi. 49 You used to have some fat, some curves there. Quite a rear you used to have—quite a rear. |
3. a. In general use: The back, or back part, of anything; spec. the back part of a motor vehicle.
| 1641 J. Jackson True Evang. T. iii. 191 The front, and the reare, the beginning, middle, and end of our salvation. 1667 Milton P.L. ix. 497 Not with indented wave, Prone on the ground,..but on his reare, Circular base of rising foulds. 1679 Moxon Mech. Exerc. ix. 152 By the width I mean the sides that range with the Front and Rear of the Building. 1864 Tennyson En. Ard. 729 The ruddy square of comfortable light, Far-blazing from the rear of Philip's house, Allured him. 1966 Publ. Amer. Dial. Soc. 1964 xlii. 8 Rear,..the aft suspension of a car; the differential of a car; the entire aft of an automobile. 1976 Evening Post (Nottingham) 16 Dec. 8/2 The 38-ton Bedford TM costs {pstlg}16,887 for the tractor business end and trailers or huge van-type rears are {pstlg}1,100 to {pstlg}1,700 extra. |
b. A (public or communal) water-closet, lavatory, or latrine. Also pl. (const. as sing.). orig. School and University slang.
| 1902 Farmer & Henley Slang VI. 4/2 Rear..(University), a jakes. 1907 H. Nicolson Let. 31 Apr. in J. Lees-Milne Harold Nicolson (1980) I. ii. 29 The usual bad rears with its hook and eye lock. 1940 [see lat3]. 1946 B. Marshall George Brown's Schooldays xliii. 170 And now let's raid the rears and rout out any of the other new swine that are hiding there. 1969 Visct. Buckmaster Roundabout ii. 30 We also had to know a Latin description of the rear, which we called Foricas. |
4. In adverbial and prepositional phrases: a. in the rear (less freq. in rear), in the hindmost part (of an army, etc.); hence, at or from the back, behind.
| 1600 Edmonds Obs. Cæsar's Comm., Mod. Training, Another meanes to preuent the enemy his assaulting vs in the reare or flanke. 1614 Raleigh Hist. World iii. (1634) 126 The horsemen..were placed on the flanks, only a troupe of the Eleans were in reare. 1689 Perfect. Milit. Discipl. (1691) 20 Fall back with your right Arm and Leg, keep the Spear in the Rear. 1722 Wollaston Relig. Nat. ix. 216 Followed many times by sharp reflections and bitter penances in the rear. 1782 Cowper Gilpin 235 With postboy scampering in the rear, They raised the hue and cry. 1844 [see front n. 5 c]. 1852 Mrs. Stowe Uncle Tom's C. xvii. 165 The women..saw, far in the rear,..a party of men looming up. 1857 Younghusband Handbk. Field Service 208 If possible to take any enemy in rear, it should be done. |
b. in (or on) one's rear, at one's back, behind one.
| 1639 R. Baillie Lett. & Jrnls. (1861) I. 212 To..march forward, leist his unkannie trewesmen should light on to call [= drive] them up in their rear. 1653 Holcroft Procopius i. 34 They began on both sides.., Vitigis and Belisarius incouraging their men in their Reares. 1745 De Foe's Eng. Tradesman vi. (1841) I. 39 His payments may come in on his front as fast as they go out in his rear. 1827 Southey Hist. Penins. War II. 303 A plan which was impossible, unless Soult should..allow the enemy to get in his rear. 1862 Stanley Jewish Ch. (1877) I. v. 108 The huge mountain range which rose on their rear, and cut off their return. |
c. in († or within) the rear of, at the back of, behind. Also in later use with at, and occas. without the.
| 1602 Shakes. Ham. i. iii. 34 Feare it Ophelia,..And keepe within the reare of your Affection. 1643 R. M. Schoole of Warre A 3 b, Half of the Muskettiers to be in the Reare of the Pikes. 1699 Bentley Phal. 194 In his own time, in the Rear of so many Poets. 1815 W. H. Ireland Scribbleomania 13 Slush from the ditch that's in rear of the mountain. 1852 Mrs. Stowe Uncle Tom's C. xv. 141 Miss Ophelia disappeared in the rear of Mammy. 1886 Law Times LXXXI. 59/2 The houses were built in 1877. At the rear of them was a 9-inch sewer. |
5. a. In verbal phrases: to bring up (or close) the rear, to come last in order. † to get the rear of, to get behind. to hang on one's rear, to follow closely, in order to attack when opportunity offers.
| 1643 Sir T. Browne Relig. Med. i. §58 My desires onely are..to be but the last man, and bring up the Rere in Heaven. 1653 Holcroft Procopius ii. 61 Whom he directed..to get the Reare of them, and to follow at their backs. 1667 [see 1]. 1717 Lady M. W. Montagu Let. to Abbé Conti 17 May, The rear was closed by the volunteers. 1728 Pope Dunc. i. 308 Let Bawdry, Billingsgate..Support his front, and Oaths bring up the rear. 1759 Robertson Hist. Scot. iii. (1817) I. 209 A body of the enemy hung upon their rear. 1860 Tyndall Glac. i. xiv. 98 Lauener was in front,..while I brought up the rear. 1884 Graphic 6 Aug. 159/1 A Lancashire army of quite as great dimensions would be able to hang on his rear. |
b. In phr. front and rear used in loose construction.
| 1689 Perfect. Milit. Discip. (1691) 28 Upon marching from your Arms, step Front and Rear together with the left Feet. 1692 Hickeringill Good Old Cause Wks. 1716 II. 512 His Army stood in battalia, ready to fight the Enemy that had beset them Front and Rear. 1808 Scott Marm. vi. xxxiv, Front, flank, and rear, the squadrons sweep. 1816 ― Antiq. xxvii, Keep thegither, front and rear. |
6. One who stands in the rear of another. rare—1.
| 1851 Mayne Reid Scalp Hunt. li. 387 The heads of the front-rank men rested between the feet of their respective ‘rears’. |
II. attrib. and Comb.
7. attrib. passing into adj. Placed or situated at the back; hindmost, last. a. In Mil. (and Naval) use of divisions of troops, etc., as rear-brigade, rear company, rear division, † rear forlorn, † rear (lorne) hope, rear-line, rear-link, rear rank, etc.
| 1600 J. Dymmok Ireland (1843) 32 In the head of the reare lorne hope. 1623 Bingham Xenophon 114, I will goe and take some of the Reare Companies. 1650 Cromwell Let. 4 Sept. in Carlyle, The Enemy..had like to have engaged our rear-brigade of horse with their whole Army. 1689 Perfect. Milit. Discipl. (1691) 59 The Rear half Files are to March exceeding slow. Ibid. 91 The Rear Ranks of Musketiers make Ready. 1727–41 Chambers Cycl., Rear-Line, of an army encamped, is the second line; it lies about four or five hundred yards distant from the first line, or front. 1769 Falconer Dict. Marine (1780), Arriere-garde, the rear-division of a squadron of vessels of war. 1796 Instr. & Reg. Cavalry (1813) 95 If on a rear division. That division will be placed... The change will then be made as on a front division. 1802 James Milit. Dict. s.v. Rear front, The rear-rank-men stand where the front-rank-men ought to be. 1861 May Const. Hist. (1863) II. viii. 83 The halting rear-rank of their own Tory followers. 1971 C. Bonington Annapurna South Face iii. 40 Lieutenant Bishnuparsad, our rear-link wireless operator, was already installed there. Ibid., He was to stay here at the pension paying-post throughout the expedition, acting as rear link and also handling all our mail. 1974 T. P. Whitney tr. Solzhenitsyn's Gulag Archipelago i. iv. 167 They were vehement in their rear-line wrath (the most intense patriotism always flourishes in the rear). |
b. In Mil. or general use, of things.
| 1667 Primatt City & C. Build. 72 Front and rear walls in the first Story to be two Bricks and a half thick. c 1860 H. Stuart Seaman's Catech. (1862) 12 Why are the rear trucks taken off?.. To give the gun more elevation. 1862 Patents, Abridg. Velocipedes (1886) I. 11 Bicycle steered by small rear wheel. 1884 Mil. Engineering (ed. 3) I. ii. 45 Choose the best men for diggers in the gun-spaces and rear-trench. The diggers in the front ditch have easier work. 1920 Rear pocket [see custard pie s.v. custard 2 b]. 1920 T. Eaton & Co. Catal. Spring & Summer 395/3 Rear Tire Carrier suitable for all models of Ford touring cars. 1925 F. Scott Fitzgerald Great Gatsby i. 10 Then there was a boom as Tom Buchanan shut the rear windows and the caught wind died out about the room. Ibid. 12 All the cars have the left rear wheel painted black as a mourning wreath. 1931 E. S. Gardner in Detective Fiction Weekly 7 Mar. 325/1 One of the officers..ensconced himself in the rear seat. 1951 Catal. Exhibits, Festival of Britain p. xxix, This new Foden rear-engine chassis has revolutionised normal design practice. 1952 V. Canning House of Seven Flies 5 A second sailor opened the rear door of the car for him. 1964 V. J. Chapman Coastal Vegetation vi. 170 Whether one is investigating fore-, mid- or rear-dunes, it will be found that the water is fresh. 1966 ‘A. Hall’ 9th Directive xx. 184 The car..was gathering speed..when I..got the rear door open and lurched inside. 1968 Listener 26 Dec. 868/3 Following the coffee-table book comes the rear-window book: the huge unread, unreadable volume that lies on the shelf behind the back seat. 1969 B. Knox Tallyman vi. 120 Rear-wheel skids should be steered into, said the rule-book. 1973 Country Life 1 Mar. 540/2 Rear-seat passengers are not too badly off for leg room. 1975 Ibid. 2 Jan. 32/2 A real omission here is a heated rear window... Rear wipers are likewise unknown. 1976 P. R. White Planning for Public Transport iii. 56 The rear-engine layout was also adopted for single-deckers. 1978 Dumfries Courier 20 Oct. 22/1 (Advt.), All are quality cars with spacious reclining seats, fitted carpets,..heated rearscreen, radial tyres, etc. |
8. With adverbial force: a. Towards the rear, as rear-directed, rear-facing. b. From the rear, as rear-driven (so rear-drive, rear-driving), rear-lit, rear-steering; rear-illuminate, rear-project vbs.
| 1855 Singleton Virgil I. 147 Trusting in flight and rear-directed shafts. 1887 Bury & Hillier Cycling 159 (Badm. Libr.) The rear-driving safety bicycle. Ibid. 162 The old class of single-driving rear-steering tricycles. 1888 Encycl. Brit. XXIII. 559/2 The evil of rear-steering is only reduced, not removed. 1904 N.E.D., rear-driven. 1961 Twentieth Century Feb. 124 Rear-lit cloths become more common [in the theatre]. 1970 Nature 19 Dec. 1217/1 A number of test-areas in the form of circular holes in a metal plate are uniformly rear-illuminated to a supra-threshold luminance. 1972 Country Life 26 Oct. 1060/3 The rack and pinion steering is responsive yet without quite the feel of a rear-drive car. 1973 Jrnl. Genetic Psychol. June 255 The stimuli..were rear-projected onto a 27·9 cm2 opaque glass screen. 1977 Lancashire Life Jan. 79/1 No rear drive Citroen has been made since the 1930s. 1978 Cornish Guardian 27 Apr. 24/5 (Advt.), 1973 Volvo 145 D/L Estate... Rear-facing child seats. |
c. At the rear, as rear-engined, rear mounted.
| 1933 Motor 10 Oct. 524/1 The rear-engined Trojan. 1957 Sci. News Let. 23 Mar. 190/1 Rear-engined cars are here to stay. 1960 Farmer & Stockbreeder 19 Jan. 90/1 In this country the accepted method of handling silage has been by means of a rear-mounted buckrake. 1975 Drive New Year 102/2 The protesting chatter from the air-cooled rear-mounted engine is more a symptom of asthma than mechanical stress. 1976 P. R. White Planning for Public Transport iii. 56 The higher maintenance costs and poorer availability of the rear-engined models. |
9. Special combs., as rear-crew U.S., the party of men who attend to the rear of a ‘drive’ of logs; rear-cut, applied attributively to a mower having the cutting-bar in the rear of the carriage (Knight 1884); rear driver, a cycle driven by means of the rear wheel; rear echelon U.S. Mil., that section of an army concerned with administrative and supply duties; also transf.; rear end, (a) the back part or section (of anything, esp. a vehicle); (b) slang, the backside or buttocks (of a person); hence as v. trans. (N. Amer.), to collide, or cause (one's vehicle) to collide, with the rear end of another vehicle; rear-ender, a rear-end collision; rear front, † ? a covering for the wall at the back of an altar (cf. front 9 b); † the back of a building (obs.); Mil. (see quot. 1802); rear gunner, a member of the crew of a military aircraft who operates a gun from a compartment or turret at the rear of the aircraft; rear-lamp, -light, a (usu. red) lamp at the rear of a vehicle which can be switched on to serve as a warning light in the dark; rear man, Naut. (see quots.); rear mirror, a rear-view mirror (see rear-view attrib.); rear pillar (see quot. 1930); rear projection = back projection s.v. back- B; rearsight, a part of a camera viewfinder, situated at the back, to which the eye is applied; rear-steerer, a tricycle steered from the back; rear-view attrib., giving a view to the rear; spec. of a mirror inside a motor vehicle in front of the driver.
| 1893 Scribner's Mag. June 715/1 Behind them follows the ‘*rear crew’, the name indicating the work they do. |
| 1934 Webster, *Rear echelon. 1947 Amer. Speech XXII. 55 Rear echelon commando, a soldier assigned to the rear. 1967 Boston Sunday Herald 7 May iii. 14/2 The number [of servicewomen] in Vietnam will remain small, chiefly because there is no large ‘rear echelon’ setup of the kind maintained in Europe in World War II. 1977 P. Johnson Enemies of Society xii. 165 This shaky argument, of the type which convinced the rear echelons of the Gadarene swine, carried the day. |
| 1868 Rep. to Govt. U.S. Munitions War 97 The metallic *rear-end of the cartridge. 1926 Daily Colonist (Victoria, B.C.) 19 Jan. 5/3 Two passengers were killed and fifty injured today in a rear-end collision of..two subway trains. 1937 J. Weidman I can get it for you Wholesale xxviii. 268 She's a pain in the rear end. 1961 Amer. Speech XXXVI. 273 Rear end,..the differentials of a tractor. 1967 G. Kelly in Coast to Coast 1965–6 95 Blokes my age are sitting on their rear-ends ordering the rest..around. |
| 1976 Islander (Victoria, B.C.) 1 Aug. 3/4 A driver came to an abrupt stop in front of me. I slithered all over the wet road but did I *rearend her? Of course not. 1978 Detroit Free Press 2 Apr. 3a/1 The men, who were on a chartered city bus traveling to a football game in 1972 when it was rear-ended by another bus, rejected a settlement of $500 apiece and took their case to the jury. |
| 1932 Erie Railroad Mag. Apr. 46/1 With all his fast running I never knew of him piling them up, of any but a few derailments and never a *rear-ender. |
| 1483 in Somerset Medieval Wills (1901) 144 [Also one white chalice, one] ‘frount’ [and] ‘*rerefrount’ [of] ‘Grenetarteryn’. 1703 Moxon Mech. Exerc. 265 A Building, which is 25 Feet, both in the Front and Reer Front. 1802 James Milit. Dict. s.v., When a battalion, troop, or company is faced about, and stands in that position, it is then said to be rear front. |
| 1920 Flight XII. 11/1 A central passage leads through to what in the military machine was the *rear gunner's cockpit, which is now occupied by the ‘postman’. 1944 ‘N. Shute’ Pastoral i. 3 He had developed into a very good rear-gunner in the Wimpey. 1977 R.A.F. News 27 Apr.–10 May 8/2 The aircraft was hit again and again and the rear gunner was wounded. |
| 1907 Westm. Gaz. 17 Sept. 4/2 When the compulsory carrying of *rear-lamps has been suggested the proposal has always been violently resisted. 1937 East London Rubber Co. Ltd. Motor Catal. 154/2 Top covers for rear lamps. |
| 1918 A. Quiller-Couch Foe-Farrell iii. 54 The car purred and glided away... We watched the *rearlight turn the corner. 1967 N. Freeling Strike out where not Applicable 159 There is nothing that looks so like the rear lights of a car as the rear lights of another car. 1968 *Rear mirror [see G.T. s.v. G III. f]. |
| 1859 F. A. Griffiths Artil. Man. (1862) 227 The two men whose numbers place them farthest from the ship's side [in working a gun] are to be termed right, and left *rear-men. c 1860 H. Stuart Seaman's Catech. 12 Who places the inclined planes? The rear-man. |
| 1930 Motor Body Building LI. 105/1 *Rear pillar, a vertical frame member at the back corner of the body. 1977 Rear pillar [see pillar n. 2 c]. |
| 1960 Practical Wireless XXXVI. 316/2 A team of demonstrators who operated the sequence of exhibit animations, *rear projection films and synchronised sound and provided a live commentary. 1976 Botham & Donnelly Valentino xii. 93 Working behind the screen, with rear-projection to help them follow the story. |
| 1971 Amateur Photogr. 13 Jan. 50/3 The *rearsight is quite large, has a permanently attached rubber eye-cup and is adjustable between +1 to -4 dioptres to suit individual eyesight. 1978 Ibid. 2 Aug. 79/2 Accessories included: carrying strap, body cap, rearsight rubber eyecup, etc. |
| 1883 Browning in Knowledge 18 May 289/2, I prefer a *rear-steerer with ratchets for easy riding. 1887 Bury & Hillier Cycling 374 (Badm. Libr.) The old bath-chair..front-steering tricycle is fast following the old rear-steerer into obscurity. |
| 1926 *Rear-view [see driving vbl. n. 3 a]. 1959 H. Nielsen Fifth Caller xiii. 195 His face had been in the rearview mirror. 1969 G. Macbeth War Quartet 17 For the moment they were framed In rear-view mirrors. 1974 V. Nabokov Look at Harlequins (1975) iv. iv. 173, I see today..the rearview reflection of that sweet wild past. |
▪ IV. rear, a.2 Obs. exc. dial.
(rɪə(r))
Forms: 1 hrer, 4–7 (9 dial.) rere, 6 reere, 6–7 (9 dial.) reer, 6–7 reare, 6–8, 9 dial. rear. See also rare a.1
[OE. hrér, of uncertain origin.]
Slightly or imperfectly cooked, underdone. In early use only of eggs.
| c 1000 Sax. Leechd. II. 272 Nim scamoniam..& hrer henne æᵹ swiðe sealt. [Cf. Ibid. III. 294 On an hreren⁓bræden æᵹ.] c 1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. 58 Þe broþis of fleisch,..& rere eyren, & smale fischis. a 1450 Knt. de la Tour (1868) 27 Thei had atte her dyner rere eggis. 1532 More Confut. Tindale Wks. 667/2 Supping of a rere roten egge. 1584 Cogan Haven Health cxciii. (1636) 174 Rere egges,..that is to say little more than through hot. 1655 Culpepper, etc. Riverius iv. vii. 121 Let the Patient abstain..from Wine, Flesh, and Rear Eggs. 1731 Medley Kolben's Cape G. Hope I. 201 The Hottentots,..love their victuals, whether roasted or boil'd, should be very rear. a 1796 Pegge Derbicisms Ser. ii, Rear, meat underdone. a 1825 in Forby Voc. E. Anglia. 1865– in dial. glossaries (Cumbld., Durham, Lancs., Yks., Lincs., Shropsh., Dorset, Hants, etc.). |
| transf. or fig. 1620 Middleton & Rowley World Tost Wks. (Dyce) V. 192 I'll have thee ramm'd Into a culverin else, and thy rear flesh Shot all into poach'd eggs. 1625 Middleton Game at Chess iv. ii, Can a soft rear, poor poach'd iniquity So ride vpon thy conscience? |
b. As complement with verbs.
| 1542 Boorde Dyetary xii. (1870) 264 Let the egge be newe, and roste hym reare. 1700 Dryden Ovid's Met., Baucis & Phil. 98 New laid Eggs, which Baucis busie Care Turn'd by a gentle Fire, and roasted rear. |
c. Comb. (cf. quot. c 1000 above), as rear-boiled, rear-dressed, rear-poached, rear-roasted.
| 1548 Elyot s.v. Ouum, Sorbile ouum, a reere rosted egge. 1576 Baker Jewell of Health 55 The hearbe [Eyebright]..eaten euerie day in a reare potched Egge. 1586 Bright Melanch. xxxix. 253 Eggs..reare dressed somewhat. 1626 Bacon Sylva §53 Eggs (so they be Potched, or Reare boyled). 1656 Heylin Surv. France 260 A dish of Egges, rear-roasted by the flame. |
▪ V. rear, v.1
(rɪə(r))
Forms: 1 rǽran, 3 ræren, 3, 4 reren, 5 reryn; 4–6 rere, 5, 6 reere, (3) 6 reare, 7– rear; (6–7 rair, 9 dial. rare).
[OE. rǽran (:—OTeut. *raizjan) = Goth. -raisjan, ON. reisa, to raise. OE. had also árǽran arear (in use down to the 17th c.).
The main senses of rear run parallel with those of the Scandinavian equivalent raise, but the adopted word has been much more extensively employed than the native, and has developed many special senses which are rarely or never expressed by rear. Hence, on the one hand, rear has in many applications been almost or altogether supplanted by raise, a process which is clearly seen in the usage of the Wyclif Bible (see note to raise; in the version of 1611 rear is found only in 1 Esdr. v. 62, while raise is freely employed). On the other hand, it is probable that rear has sometimes, esp. in poetry, been used as a more rhetorical substitute for raise, without independent development of the sense involved. As in the case of raise there is some overlapping of the senses, and occasional uncertainty as to the precise development or meaning of transferred uses.]
I. To set up on end; to make to stand up.
1. a. trans. To bring (a thing) to or towards a vertical position; to set up, or upright. = raise 1.
Frequently with suggestion of senses 8 or 11, and now usually implying a considerable height in the thing when raised.
| a 1000 Cædmon's Gen. 1675 (Gr.) Ceastre worhton & to heofonum up hlædræ rærdon. c 1205 Lay. 1100 Heo rærden heora mastes. Ibid. 17458 Mærlin heom [the stones] gon ræren [c 1275 reare] alse heo stoden ærer. 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) V. 455 Þe place þere Oswaldus knelede and rerede a crosse. c 1400 Sowdone Bab. 2658 Thai rered the Galowes in haste. 1530 Palsgr. 687/2 It is a great deale longer than one wolde have thought it afore it was reared up. 1571 Digges Pantom. i. xxix. I j b, Fixing on the dimetient thereof two sightes perpendicularly reared. 1631 Weever Anc. Funeral Mon. 637 A broken peece of a faire marble stone, reared to the side of a pillar. 1688 Prior Ode Exodus iii 108 That Ladder which old Jacob rear'd. 1725 Pope Odyss. xi. 3 At once the mast we rear, at once unbind The spacious sheet. 1822 W. Irving Braceb. Hall xxvi. 225 The May-pole was reared on the green. 1847 Tennyson Princ. v. 404 Your very armour hallow'd, and your statues Rear'd. |
| refl. 1596 Drayton Legends iv. 933 The Corne..being once downe, it selfe can never reare. |
b. spec. of setting up the crust of a pie. Now dial. = raise 1 c.
| c 1420 Liber Cocorum (1862) 34 Take floure and rere the cofyns fyne, Wele stondande withouten stine. 1588 Shakes. Tit. A. v. ii. 189 Of the Paste a Coffen I will reare. 1879– in dial. glossaries (Chesh., Shropsh., Warw.). |
2. a. To lift (a person or animal) to or towards an erect or standing posture; usually, to set (one) on one's feet, assist to rise. Now chiefly dial.
| 1590 Spenser F.Q. i. viii. 40 He found the meanes that Prisoner vp to reare, Whose feeble thighes..him scarse to light could beare. Ibid. x. 35 She held him fast, and firmely did upbeare; As carefull nourse her child from falling oft does reare. 1667 Milton P.L. xi. 758 Till gently reared By th' Angel, on thy feet thou stood'st at last. 1667 N. Fairfax in Phil. Trans. II. 457 Nor could she lie flat, but rear'd up with pillows. 1769 Sir W. Jones Pal. Fort. in Poems (1777) 30 The Matron with surprize her daughter rears. |
b. refl. To get up on one's feet, to rise up (rare); also of animals, to rear (sense 15 b).
| c 1580 Sidney Ps. iii. iii, I laid me downe and slept,..And safe from sleepe I rear'd me. 1591 Spenser M. Hubberd 237 Eftsoones the Ape himselfe gan up to reare. 1749 Fielding Tom Jones iv. xiii, The unruly beast presently reared himself an end on his hind-legs. 1856 Kane Arct. Expl. II. xv. 164 He [a bear] will rear himself upon his hind-legs. |
c. So with body, etc. as object. Chiefly refl.
| 1593 Shakes. 2 Hen. VI, iii. ii. 34 Helpe Lords, the King is dead. Som. Rere vp his Body, wring him by the Nose. 1610 Willet Hexapla Daniel 137 Whereas before he went groueling..now he reareth vp his bodie. 1667 Milton P.L. i. 221 Forthwith upright he rears from off the Pool His mighty Stature. 1810 Shelley St. Irvyne iii. xvi, Her skeleton form the dead Nun rear'd. 1815 ― Alastor 182 He reared his shuddering limbs. |
d. To cause (a horse) to rear. rare—1.
| 1814 Southey Roderick xxv, He raised his hand, and rear'd and back'd the steed. |
† 3. a. To raise from the dead. Obs. = raise 3.
| c 1320 Sir Beues (MS. A) 2839 Lord, þat rerede þe Lazaroun. 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) IV. 461 Iulianus..rered þre men fro deth to lyve. 1572 R. H. tr. Lavaterus' Ghostes (1596) 177 [Saule] sought helpe of a witch to reare Samuel from the dead. |
| refl. c 1450 Lonelich Grail xlix. 201 Ȝif that to lyve he rere him Ageyn thanne ben they myhty [gods]. |
† b. To raise (a person) to, out of, or from a certain condition. Obs.
Connexion with sense 17 is also possible. Cf. raise 19.
| c 1450 tr. De Imitatione iii. lxii. 145, I am it þat rere to helth hem þat morneþ. c 1580 Sidney Ps. xxxiv. ix, God shall him to safety reare, When most he seemes opprest. 1590 Spenser F.Q. iii. i. 64 Their Ladye..they reard out of her frosen swownd. 1624 Quarles Div. Poems, Job (1717) 187 Then doubt not, but he'll rear thee from thy sorrow. |
4. To cause to rise: a. To rouse from bed or sleep. Obs. exc. dial. = raise 4 a.
| a 1000 Riddles iv. 73 (Gr.) Saᵹa hwæt ic hatte oþþe hwa mec rære, þonne ic restan ne mot. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 77 [To pray] þat he..weche us of ure heuie slape and rere us of ure fule lust bedde. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. C. 188 Þer ragnel in his rakentes hym rere of his dremes. 1382 Wyclif Jer. xxxi. 26 Therfore as fro slep I am rered. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 430/2 Reryn, or revyn of slepe, infra in wakyn', excito. 1886 Elworthy W. Som. Word-bk., Rear, to rouse; to disturb. |
† b. To rouse or dislodge (a beast of chase, spec. a boar) from covert. Obs. = raise 4 b.
| 1486 Bk. St. Albans E iv, Whiche beestes shall be reride with the lymer. 1575 Turberv. Venerie xl. 115 Beating and following vntill they haue reared and found the Harte againe. 1582 Stanyhurst æneis i. (Arb.) 28 Rearing with shoutcry soom boare. 1685 Dryden tr. Horace Epode ii, Into the naked Woods he goes And seeks the tusky Boar to rear. a 1700 B. E. Dict. Cant. Crew, Rear the Boar, dislodge him. 1774 Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1776) III. 174 When the boar is rear'd, as is the expression for driving him from his covert. 1846 Youatt Pig iv. (1847) 37 When first the animal was ‘reared’, he contented himself with slowly going away. |
5. To rouse up for common action. Obs. exc. dial. = raise 5.
| c 1400 Beryn 2905 [He] made an hidouse Cry,..& rerid vp al þe town. 1460 Paston Lett. I. 506 The kyng cometh to London ward, and..rereth the pepyll as he come. 1464 Ibid. II. 148 That..he rere the contre and take hem and bryng hem to the Kyng. 1593 Shakes. Rich. II, iv. i. 145 If you reare this House against this House. 1864 Barnes Dorset Gloss., Rear,..to rouse; to excite. 1878 Cumbld. Gloss., Rear,..rally, bring up. 1891 T. Hardy Tess (1900) 143/1 There are sixteen of us on the Plain, and the whole country is reared. |
† 6. To arouse, animate, stimulate. Obs. = raise 6.
| 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 97 b, Therfore rere vp thy courage & shewe thy manhode. 1621 Burton Anat. Mel. ii. ii. vi. iii. (1651) 299 A roaring-meg against Melancholy, to rear and revive the languishing soul. 1647 H. More Song of Soul ii. i. ii. ii, New strength my vitals doth invade And rear again, that earst began to fade. |
II. To build up, create, bring into existence.
7. a. To construct by building up. = raise 8.
It is not clear whether the common OE. phrase Godes (or dryhtnes) lof rǽran is a fig. use of this sense, or is to be associated with branch III.
| a 900 tr. Bæda's Hist. iii. ii[i]. (1890) 158 He Cristes cirican in his rice ᵹeornlice timbrede & rærde. a 1000 Cædmon's Gen. 1880 (Gr.) Ongunnon him þa bytlian & heora burh ræran. c 1205 Lay. 15459 Ich faren wulle to þan munte of Reir & ræren þer castel. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 5408 Abbeys he rerde monion In mony studes. 1382 Wyclif Gen. xxxiii. 20 And there, an auter reryd, he..clepide vpon the..God of Israel. 1479 Nottingham Rec. II. 390 That the seid howse be fenysshit, reryd and made upp. a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VIII 73 A tower..rered by great crafte. 1590 Spenser F.Q. iii. x. 52 Amongst the hives to reare An hony combe. 1634 Milton Comus 798 Till all thy magick structures rear'd so high, Were shatter'd into heaps. 1697 Dryden Virg. Ecl. ii. 30 When summon'd Stones the Theban Turrets rear'd. 1779 J. Moore View Soc. Fr. (1789) I. xlviii. 408 He had reared a building greatly larger. 1849 Macaulay Hist. Eng. v. I. 629 Her family reared a sumptuous mausoleum over her remains. 1874 Green Short Hist. iii. §4. 129 The canons..reared the church which still exists as the diocesan cathedral. |
| fig. 1772 Mackenzie Man World i. ii. (1803) 421 The fall of those hopes we had been vainly diligent to rear. 1781 Cowper Table-t. 532 From him who rears a poem lank and long, To him who strains his all into a song. 1812 Miss Mitford in L'Estrange Life (1870) I. vi. 193 How weak the fame the lowly songstress rears. |
† b. To bring into existence; to cause to arise or appear. Obs. = raise 9, 11.
In the Wyclif Bible (up to the end of Jeremiah) rere is regularly employed to render L. suscitāre in the above senses: it is not quite clear whether the underlying idea belongs here or to branch I.
| 1382 Wyclif Gen. xxxviii. 8 Go yn to the wijf of thi brother..that thou rere seed to thi brother. ― 1 Sam. ii. 35, I shal rere to me a trewe preest. 1591 Shakes. 1 Hen. VI, iv. vii. 92 From their ashes shall be reard A Phœnix. |
† 8. a. To originate, bring about, set going (a state or condition of things, esp. one which causes trouble or annoyance); to commence and carry on (some action, esp. war). Obs. = raise 12, 14.
| a 900 Cynewulf Christ 689 God..sibbe ræreþ ece to ealdre engla & monna. a 1023 Wulfstan Hom. xxxiii. (1883) 156 Dæᵹhwamlice man ihte yfel æfter oðrum, and unriht rærde. c 1052 O.E. Chron. (MS. C.) an. 1052 Ealle Frencisce men þe ær unlaᵹe rærdon. 12.. Moral Ode 172 (Egerton MS.) Þo scullen habben hardne dom..þa þe euele heolden wreche men & vuele laȝes rerde. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 8987 Erl thebaud..bigan to rere worre vpe þe king of france. c 1330 Florice & Bl. (1857) 685 We han irerd this schame and schonde. 1382 Wyclif 2 Sam. xii. 11, I shal rere vpon thee yuel of thin hows. a 1450 Myrc 1243 Hast þow reret any debate. 1494 Fabyan Chron. vii. 454 Which tempest, after y⊇ oppynyon of some wryters, was reryd by y⊇ negromauncers of y⊇ Frenshe Kynge. a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. IV 10 If any persones would presume to rere warre or congregate a multitude. 1577 J. Northbrooke Dicing (1843) 25 Rearing vp slanders vpon the preachers of the worde of God. 1590 Spenser F.Q. ii. vi. 21 Her mery fitt she freshly gan to reare. Ibid. xii. 22 Unweeting what such horrour straunge did reare. |
b. To make (a noise) by shouting; to utter (a cry); to begin to sing. rare. = raise 13. Obs.
Also associated with (or originating in) branch III.
| 13.. E.E. Allit. P. B. 873 Þenne þe rebaudez so ronk rered such a noyse. c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 6417 (Kölbing) Þe paiens..gun rere a wel foule crie. 1382 Wyclif Isa. xv. 5 The cri of contricioun thei shul rere [L. levabunt]. c 1500 in Arnolde Chron. (1811) 94 Ye shall rere vp hue and crye and..folowe theym fro strete to strete. 1784 Cowper Task vi. 662 The simple clerk..did rear right merrily, two staves, Sung to the praise and glory of King George. |
9. a. To bring (animals) to maturity or to a certain stage of growth by giving proper nourishment and attention; esp. to attend to the breeding and growth of (cattle, etc.) as an occupation. = raise 9 b, 10 b.
| c 1420 Pallad. on Husb. i. 610 The pocok me may rere vp [L. nutrire] esely If beestes wilde or theuys hem ne greue. 1523 Fitzherb. Husb. §8 That countrey is not for men to kepe husbandry vppon, but for to rere and brede catell or shepe. Ibid. §66 Yet is it better to the housbande, to sell those calues, than to rere them, bycause of the cost. [1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iii. 668 Thoughtless of his Eggs, [the snake] forgets to rear The hopes of Poison, for the following Year.] 1759 Brown Compl. Farmer 49 It is a common saying, the worst housewife will rear the best pigs. 1774 Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1776) II. 248 Those persons whose employment it is to rear up pigeons of different colours, can breed them..to a feather. 1805 R. W. Dickson Pract. Agric. II. 985 Calves reared in this manner are to be enticed to eat hay as early as possible. 1844 H. Stephens Bk. Farm III. 845 No man rears a stallion for the use of his own mares only. 1863 Sat. Rev. 11 July 49 Man devotes his energies to the..employment of rearing pigs. |
b. To bring up (a person), to foster, nourish, educate. = raise 10.
| 1590 Shakes. Mids. N. ii. i. 136 For her sake I doe reare vp her boy. 1605 Sylvester Du Bartas ii. iii. iii. Lawe 180 She takes him up and rears him royall-like. 1671 Milton Samson 555 God with these forbid'n made choice to rear His mighty Champion. 1784 Cowper Task vi. 38 We loved, but not enough, the gentle hand That reared us. 1803 J. Davis Trav. U.S. 215 This gentleman..is not only a Latin, but a Greek Scholar. He was reared at Cambridge. 1879 M. Pattison Milton 179 When Milton was being reared, Calvinism was not old and effete. |
| absol. 1850 Tennyson In Mem. xl, Her office there to rear, and teach. |
c. To attend to, promote, or cause the growth of (plants); to grow (grain, etc.). = raise 10 c. Also const. into.
| 1581 W. Stafford Exam. Compl. i. (1876) 19 Breade Corne, and Malte corne ynough, besides, reared alltogether vpon the same lande. 1728 Young Love Fame v. 230 In distant wilds..She rears her flow'rs. 1784 Cowper Task vi. 753 Happy to rove among poetic flowers, Though poor in skill to rear them. 1810 Scott Lady of L. v. vii, While on yon plain The Saxon rears one shock of grain. 1834 H. Miller Scenes & Leg. v. (1857) 61 In those times it was quite as customary for farmers to rear the flax which supplied them with clothing. 1871 R. Ellis tr. Catullus lxii. 50 A flower..rear'd by the showers. 1871 Browning Pr. Hohenst. 52 To play at horticulture, rear some rose Or poppy into perfect leaf and bloom. |
| transf. 1728–46 Thomson Spring 1148 Delightful task! to rear the tender thought, To teach the young idea how to shoot. 1770 Burke Pres. Discont. Wks. II. 340 It is therefore our business..to rear to the most perfect vigour and maturity, every sort of generous and honest feeling. 1781 Cowper Hope 295 Hopes of every sort, whatever sect Esteem them, sow them, rear them, and protect. |
d. To raise or grow (meat or food).
| 1799 J. Robertson Agric. Perth 345 In the highlands every man rears, on his own farm, what butcher meat his family requires. |
III. To lift from a lower to a higher position.
10. a. To lift up or upwards as a whole. = raise 17.
Sometimes also with implication of sense 1, esp. in to rear the head.
| 971 Blickl. Hom. 187 Rære up þin heafod & ᵹeseoh þis þæt Simon deþ. c 1320 Sir Tristr. 1391 Þai rered goinfay⁓noun. 1382 Wyclif Exod. x. 13 A brennynge wynd reride vp locustes. ― Matt. xi. 23 And thou, Caphernaum, whether til in to heuen thou shalt be rerid vp? c 1450 Bk. Curtasye 754 in Babees Bk., Who so euer he takes þat mete to bere Schalle not so hardy þo couertoure rere. c 1485 Digby Myst. iii. 1878 Rere vp þe seyll In all þe hast, as well as þou can. 1571 Digges Pantom. i. xvii. E iij b, The nature of water is such, as by pipes it may be rered aboue the fountaine hed. 1610 Shakes. Temp. ii. i. 295 When I reare my hand, do you the like To fall it on Gonzalo. 1668 Culpepper & Cole Barthol. Anat. iv. vii. 165 Its Use is to rear up the Chest. 1726 Pope Odyss. xxii. 14 High in his hands he rear'd the golden bowl. 1827 Hood Mids. Fairies xviii, Upon a mast rear'd far aloft, He bore a very bright and crescent blade. 1864 Tennyson En. Ard. 752 The babe, who rear'd his creasy arms. |
| refl. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xii. i. (Bodl. MS.), Þe more brides haueþ of holownes of pennes..þe more eselich þei rereþ þemsilf and fleeþ vpward. |
b. To have, hold, or sustain (some part) in an elevated or lofty position. (Also quasi-refl.) fig. phr. to rear its (ugly) head, and varr. = to raise its (ugly) head s.v. raise v.1 17 e.
| 1667 Milton P.L. iv. 699 Each beauteous flour..Rear'd high thir flourisht heads between, and wrought Mosaic. 1671 ― P.R. iv. 546 Higher yet the glorious Temple rear'd Her pile. 1757 Gray Bard 112 Sublime their starry fronts they rear. 1781 J. Moore View Soc. It. (1790) I. xxxv. 381 The ancient Mistress of the World rears her head in melancholy majesty. 1823 Byron Island iv. ii, A black rock rears its bosom o'er the spray. 1857 Trollope Barchester T. II. viii. 124 Rebellion had already reared her hideous head within the [bishop's] palace. 1872 Jenkinson Guide Eng. Lakes (1879) 150 Honister Crag, the grandest in the district, rears its front on the left. 1946 K. Tennant Lost Haven (1947) vii. 96 Another problem reared its ugly head. 1966 B. Kimenye Kalasanda Revisited 21 Scandal of even the mildest type failed to rear its head. 1971 Daily Tel. 5 July 1 The problem of broken rails is rearing its ugly head again in the current spate of railway accidents. 1976 0–10 Cricket Scene (Austral.) 21/1 They crumbled as their inexperience reared its ugly head. |
c. refl. To rise up to a height, to tower.
| 1774 Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1862) I. ii. 10 The ground..rears itself..in lofty mountains and inaccessible cliffs. 1839 J. H. Newman Par. Serm. (1842) IV. xvii. 298 The stately tree rears itself aloft. 1860 Tyndall Glac. i. ix. 63 A steep slope of snow..reared itself against the mountain wall. |
† d. absol. or with it. To raise anchor. Obs.
| 14.. Sailing Directions (Hakluyt Soc. 1889) 13 Yif ye Ride in the Doowns and will go into Sandwiche haven, Rere it by turnyng wynde at an est south of the moone. Ibid. 15 A man that ridith in the way of odierene at an ankre, he may begyn to rere at an est southest moone for to turne. |
11. To lift up, raise, elevate, exalt, in various fig. applications (sometimes with suggestion of other senses of rear or raise). Now rare or Obs.
| 1382 Wyclif Jer. li. 1 Babilon and..his dwelleris, that ther herte rereden aȝen me. c 1450 tr. De Imitatione i. xxiii. 32 Kepe þin herte fre & rere it up to þy god. 1586 Marlowe 1st Pt. Tamburl. iii. ii, And higher would I rear my estimate Than Iuno. 1611 Shakes. Wint. T. i. ii. 314 His Cup-bearer, whom I from meaner forme Haue bench'd, and rear'd to Worship. 1637 R. Ashley tr. Malvezzi's David Persecuted 5 The same action which at one time hath reared up a Prince, should..sink him. 1655 Jer. Taylor Guide Devot. (1719) 154 Thy Goodness may hereafter rear Our Souls unto thy Glory. |
12. To turn or direct (esp. the eyes) upwards.
| 1596 Spenser F.Q. vi. ii. 42 The Ladie..Gan reare her eyes as to the chearefull light. 1621 Quarles Div. Poems, Esther (1717) 14 Jonah (humbly rearing up his eyes). 1671 Milton P.R. ii. 285 Up to a hill anon his steps he rear'd. 1712–14 Pope Rape Lock i. 126 To that she bends, to that her eyes she rears. 1807 J. Barlow Columb. iv. 135 O'er the dark world Erasmus rears his eye. |
13. To cause to rise: a. Naut. = raise 23 a.
| 1555 Eden Decades 351 In .xv. degrees we dyde reere the crossiers. 1559 W. Cuningham Cosmogr. Glasse 49 We reared the north starre in short space .xij. degr. and at length, 30. deg. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk. s.v., To rear an object in view, is to rise or approach it. |
† b. To raise (a fiend). Obs.
| 1567 Golding Ovid's Met. vi. (1593) 148 The tyrant with a hideous noise away the table shooves, And reares the fiends from hell. |
c. To make (the voice) heard. = raise 21.
| 1817 Scott Harold vi. xiii, When his voice he rear'd,..The powerful accents roll'd along. 1818 Shelley Rev. Islam xi. xx, His voice then did the stranger rear. |
† 14. a. To levy, raise, gather, collect (fines, rents, etc.). Obs. = raise 25. Also const. upon.
| c 1420 Sir Amadace (Camden) xii, A marchand of this cite, Hade riche rentus to rere. 1449 Rolls of Parlt. V. 144/2 A Subsidie to be take and rereyd of al manere Prests seculers. 1475 Bk. Noblesse (Roxb.) 30 Oppressid..by over gret taskis and tailis rered uppon them. 1574 Galway Arch. in 10th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. V. 423, xxti pound sterlinge current mony of England to be rered and levied to the commone use. 1599 Hakluyt Voy. II. ii. 60 Which rent is reared onely in goats skinnes. |
† b. To levy, raise (an army). Obs.—1
| a 1400–50 Alexander 81 Artaxenses is at hand & has ane ost reryd, And resyn vp with all his rewme. |
† c. To take away from one. Obs.—1
| 1596 Spenser F.Q. iv. vi. 6 He, in an open Turney lately held, Fro me the honour of that game did reare. |
IV. 15. a. intr. To rise up (towards a vertical position or into the air); to rise high, to tower.
Spec. in Husb. of a furrow-slice: see quots. 1523 and 1790.
| 13.. E.E. Allit. P. B. 366 Þe mukel lauande loghe to þe lyfte rered. Ibid. 423 Ofte hit roled on-rounde & rered on ende. 1523 Fitzherb. Husb. §16 Lette the husbande..plowe a brode forowe and a depe..and lay it flat, that it rere not on the edge. 1790 W. Marshall Mid. Counties (1796) II. Gloss. (E.D.S.) Rear, to rise up before the plow, as the furrows sometimes do in plowing. 1840 Dickens Old C. Shop xxxviii, The loftiest steeple that now rears proudly up from the midst of guilt. 1881 Scribner's Mag. Aug. 532/2 If a wind on the beam is so strong as to make her either slide or ‘rear up’ too much. |
b. intr. Of a quadruped, esp. a horse: To rise on the hind feet. Also with it.
| 1375 Barbour Bruce xiv. 69 Hobynis, that war stekit thar, Rerit and flang. 1592 Shakes. Ven. & Ad. 279 Sometimes he trots,..Anon he reres vpright, curuets, and leaps. 1611 Cotgr., Cabrer, to reare, or stand vpright on the hinder feet;..as a Goat, or Kid that brouses on a tree. 1761 Sterne Tr. Shandy III. xxxvi, Let me beg of you, like an unback'd filly..to jump it, to rear it, to bound it. 1800 Coleridge Wallenstein iv. iv, His charger, by a halbert bored, rear'd up. 1870 Emerson Soc. & Solit. x. 207 When he began to rear, they were so frightened that they could not see the horse. |
| fig. 1629 Gaule Holy Madn. 92 How he reares in the Necke. a 1761 Johnson in Boswell an. 1780 Johnson..professed that he could bring him out into conversation, and used this illusive expression, ‘Sir, I can make him rear’. 1899 Scribner's Mag. Jan. 98/1 [He] is a brave man and has been known to rear on occasions. |
c. trans. To throw off by rearing. nonce-use.
| 1852 Bailey Festus xxii. (ed. 3) 395 Earth rear off her cities As a horse his rider. |
16. intr. To turn out (well or ill) in course of, or after, rearing (in sense 9).
| 1894 Daily News 2 Oct. 6/6 In the counties mentioned pheasants have reared well. |
▪ VI. rear, v.2 Obs. exc. arch.
(rɪə(r))
Also 5–6 rere.
[Of obscure origin.]
trans. To cut up or carve (a fowl, spec. a goose).
| c 1470 in Hors, Shepe & G. (Caxton 1479, Roxb. repr.) 33 A dere broken, a ghoos rerid, a swan lyfte..a heron dismembrid. c 1500 For to serve a Lord in Babees Bk. 374 To lose or untache a bitorn: kitte his nekke,..rere hym legge and whynge, as the heron. a 1756 Mrs. Heywood New Present (1771) 269 To rear a Goose. 1804 Farley London Art Cookery (ed. 10) 293 To rear a goose, cut off both legs in the manner of shoulder of lamb. 1840 H. Ainsworth Tower of London (1864) 412 In the old terms of his art, he leached the brawn, reared the goose. |
▪ VII. † rear, v.3 Obs. rare.
[f. rear n.3]
1. trans. To attack or assail in the rear.
| 1670 Eachard Cont. Clergy 48 He falls a fighting with his text, and makes a pitch'd battel of it,..he rears it, flanks it, entrenches it, storms it. 1682 Bunyan Holy War xv, Then the captains fell on, and began roundly to front and flank and rear Diabolus' camp. |
2. To strengthen in the rear.
| 1680 J. Scott Serm. bef. Artillery Comp. Wks. 1718 II. 24 We cannot talk in Rank and File, Flank and Rear our Discourses with Military Allusions. |
▪ VIII. † rear, v.4 Obs.—1 Naut.
(Of obscure origin and meaning.)
| 1599 Hakluyt Voy. II. ii. 40, I tooke our skiffe and went to them to know why they lost vs,..and Iohn Kire made me answere that his ship would neither reare nor steere. |
▪ IX. † rear, adv.1 Obs.—1
= arrear adv.
The sense of the passage is not clear; the phrase may mean simply ‘not at all’.
| c 1412 Hoccleve De Reg. Princ. 1247 Sone, as for me, nouthir avaunte ne rere. |
▪ X. † rear, adv.2 Obs. rare.
= rare adv.2 Early.
| 1714 Gay Sheph. Week i. 6 O'er yonder Hill does scant the Dawn appear, Then why does Cuddy leave his Cott so rear? Ibid. 11 This rising rear betokeneth well thy mind. |
▪ XI. rear
dial. variant of roar v.