rover en · NOUN · etymology 1
Pronunciation
- /ˈɹəʊvə/ (Received-Pronunciation)
- /ˈɾoːvə/ (Wales) without the toe–tow merger
- /ˈɹoʊvɚ/ (General-American)
- /ˈɾovəɾ/ (Scotland)
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
From rove (“to roam, wander; (archery) to shoot an arrow randomly”) + -er (suffix forming agent nouns from verbs). Rove is derived from Late Middle English *roven, rove (“to wander”); further etymology uncertain, possibly an English Midlands variant of Northern England raven, rave (“to rove, stray, wander”), possibly from Old Norse ráfa (“to roam, wander”) (although rove and rave are only attested much later), possibly from Proto-Germanic *wabōną, *wabjaną (“to cause to weave; to entangle, wrap”), from Proto-Indo-European *webʰ- (“to braid, weave”).
Meanings
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One who roves: a person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination; a nomad, a roamer, a wanderer.
But these islands, undisturbed for years, relapsed into their previous obscurity; and it is only recently that anything has been known concerning them. Once in the course of a half century, to be sure, some adventurous rover would break in upon their peaceful repose. and astonished at the unusual scene, would be almost tempted to claim the merit of a new discovery.
1846 February 26, Herman Melville, chapter I, in Narrative of a Four Months’ Residence among the Natives of a Valley of the Marquesas Islands; or, A Peep at Polynesian Life [Typee], London: John Murray, […], →OCLC:I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life, / To the gull's way and the whale's way, where the wind's like a whetted knife; / And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover, / And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's over.
1902, John Masefield, Sea Fever:
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(broadly, dated) A restless, unsteady person who does not settle down; specifically (historical), a flirtatious, unfaithful man; a rake.
Near-synonyms: see Thesaurus:libertine
She is a rover and dislikes any sort of ties, physical or emotional.
Give him the word, that I'm not a rover, and tell him that his lonely days are over.
1954, Pat Ballard, “Mr. Sandman”:
- (broadly, historical) Also rover ticket: a person who has a ticket for an event, performance, etc., but no assigned seat, and so has to find a place to sit or stand.
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(broadly) A small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies.
September 19, 2005, Dave Lane, Mars Exploration Rover "OPPORTUNITY" NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity is currently traveling southward over a pavement of outcrop dubbed the "Erebus Highway." "Erebus Crater," the rover's next target, lies less than 100 meters (328 feet) south of its current position
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(broadly) A defensive back position whose coverage responsibilities are a combination of those of a cornerback, linebacker, and safety; also, a player playing this position.
I went to Coach Beamer and, because we had a lot of outside linebackers, ask him if I could play rover.
2011, Frank Beamer, Always a Hokie: Players, Coaches, and Fans Share Their Passion for Virginia Tech Football:
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(broadly, historical) Chiefly in the plural in the form to shoot at rovers: a target randomly selected by an archer, usually for practice; also, a fixed target for practising long-distance shooting.
"By my hilt! no. There was little Robby Withstaff, and Andrew Salblaster, and Wat Alspaye, who broke the neck of the German. Mon Dieu! what men they were! Take them how you would, at long butts or short, hoyles, rounds, or rovers, better bowmen never twirled a shaft over their thumb-nails.
1890, Arthur Conan Doyle, chapter 22, in The White Company:
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(broadly, obsolete) A type of heavy arrow used for long-distance shooting.
All sorts, flights, rovers, and butt shafts.
1600 (first performance), Beniamin Ionson [i.e., Ben Jonson], “Cynthias Reuels, or The Fountayne of Selfe-Loue. […]”, in The Workes of Beniamin Ionson (First Folio), London: […] Will[iam] Stansby, published 1616, →OCLC:
- (broadly, qualifier:Australian rules football) A position that is one of three of a team's followers making up a ruck, who follow the ball around the ground; also, a player playing this position, who is generally fast and skilful at receiving the ball, and formerly of shorter stature.
- (broadly, qualifier:croquet) In full rover ball: a ball which has passed through all the hoops and would peg out if it hit the stake but is continued in play to help fellow players or obstruct opposing players; also, the player of such a ball.
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(alt-of, broadly, historical) Alternative letter-case form of Rover (“an early type of safety bicycle with a lower riding position than previous models”).
alt of Rover
- (broadly) A remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROUV) or remotely operated vehicle (ROV).
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(alt-of, broadly) Alternative letter-case form of Rover (“Short for Land Rover (“a type of road vehicle capable of being driven off-road”)”).
alt of Rover
- (broadly) The tenth defensive player in slow-pitch softball.
- (broadly, historical, qualifier:rugby union) A forward whose responsibility was to feed the scrum and protect the scrum-half; the position was abandoned after a 1931 rule change.
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(UK, alt-of, broadly) Alternative letter-case form of Rover (“Short for Rover Scout (“a member of a Scouting organization for young men too old to be Boy Scouts”)”).
alt of Rover
- (UK, attributive, broadly) Especially in rover ticket: a type of pass, ticket, etc., that allows the holder unlimited travel on certain types of public transport for specified periods.
- (UK, broadly, historical, qualifier:World War II) In full rover patrol: an airborne reconnaissance patrol.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| rovers | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
ruck rover · lunar rover · Land Rover · salt-rover · rover ticket · sea rover · rover ball · Rover Scout · rover bellflower · Mars rover · Sallee rover
Descendants
rover · Rover · rover · rover · Rover
Synonyms
whoremonger · seducer · roué · gallant · stringer · debaucher · lewdster · smell-smock · player · fuck boy · player · manslut · man whore · rip · rakehell · fuckboy · carpetmonger · rizzler · shag bandit · tart · adulterer · he-bitch · manwhore · libertine · gallant · satyriasist · voluptuary · rake · philanderer · goat · cad · rolling stone · salty dog · playboy · chamberer · muttonmonger · loverboy · lecher · tomcat · hood rat · rantipole · horndog · loverman · fornicator · philanderer · pimp · himbo · striker · bed-hopper · sleaze · satyr · rake · man-whore · debauchee · stud · drabber · fuck-boy · rover · benedick · wanton · swordsman · satyromaniac · homme fatal · man ho
Translations (71)
fi kulkuri (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · mk месечиноо́д (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · de Weltenbummler (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · ja ローバー (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · sv nomad (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · de Rover (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · pl cel przygodny ((archery) target randomly selected by an archer, usually for practice; fixed target for practising long-distance shooting) · pl wagabunda (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · fi kulkuri (restless, unsteady person who does not settle down) · fi kiertolainen (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · pl włóczykij (restless, unsteady person who does not settle down) · mk планетоо́д (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · pl bilet sieciowy (type of pass, ticket, etc., that allows the holder unlimited travel on certain types of public transport for specified periods) · bg странник (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · es trotamundos (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · mr भटकणारे (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · pl rover ((rugby union) forward whose responsibility was to feed the scrum and protect the scrum-half) · pl osoba z biletem bez siedzenia (person who has a ticket for an event, performance, etc., but no assigned seat) · ru стра́нник (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · pl rover ((Australian rules football) position that is one of three of a team’s followers making up a ruck; player playing this position) · sv strövare (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · pl powietrzny patrol rozpoznawczy (airborne reconnaissance patrol) · ru планетохо́д (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · ro rover (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · pl łazik (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · fi rover ((American football) defensive back position; player playing this position) · fi paimentolainen (nomad) (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · mi kaewa (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · de Wanderer (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · el περιπλανώμενος (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · de Nomade (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · fi tiedustelupartio (airborne reconnaissance patrol) · fi paikattoman lipun omistava henkilö (person who has a ticket for an event, performance, etc., but no assigned seat) · es vagabundo (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · mr रोव्हर (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · nl rover (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · fi kulkija (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · pl wędrowiec (restless, unsteady person who does not settle down) · mr भटकणारी (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · pl rover ((softball) tenth defensive player in slow-pitch softball) · fi aikalippu (type of pass, ticket, etc., that allows the holder unlimited travel on certain types of public transport for specified periods) · mr भटकणारा (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · pl rover ((American football) defensive back position; player playing this position) · fi mönkijä (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · pl robot podwodny (remotely operated underwater vehicle) · ru бродя́га (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · mr रोव्हर ((Australian rules football) position that is one of three of a team’s followers making up a ruck; player playing this position) · bg сонда (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · fi rover ((rugby union) forward whose responsibility was to feed the scrum and protect the scrum-half) · mk скитник (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · fi rover ((Australian rules football) position that is one of three of a team’s followers making up a ruck; player playing this position) · de Vagabund (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · sv rover (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · lb Rover (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · sv vandrare (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · pl włóczykij (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · fi kauko-ohjattu vedenalainen ajoneuvo (remotely operated underwater vehicle) · fi rover ((softball) tenth defensive player in slow-pitch softball) · hu járó (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · pl wędrowiec (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · ru скита́лец (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · fi vaeltaja (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · cmn 探測漫遊者 /探测漫游者 (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · uk планетохі́д (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · bg скитник (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · mk марсоо́д (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · fi harjoitusmaali ((archery) target randomly selected by an archer, usually for practice; fixed target for practising long-distance shooting) · pl wagabunda (restless, unsteady person who does not settle down) · el πλάνης (person or animal that travels around, especially over a wide area, without a fixed destination) · es astromóvil (small manned or unmanned land vehicle for exploring extraterrestrial bodies) · pl rover ((croquet) ball which has passed through all the hoops and would peg out if it hit the stake but is continued in play; player of such a ball)