Etymology tree
substratebor.?
Proto-Germanic *silubrą
Proto-West Germanic *silubr
Old English seolfor
Middle English silver
English silver
Inherited from Middle English silver, selver, sulver, from Old English seolfor, from Proto-West Germanic *silubr, from Proto-Germanic *silubrą (“silver”), of uncertain origin.
cognates and etymology discussion
Cognate with Scots siller (“silver”), Saterland Frisian Säälwer (“silver”), West Frisian sulver (“silver”), Dutch zilver (“silver”), German Low German Silver, Sülver (“silver”), German Silber (“silver”), Swedish silver (“silver”), Icelandic silfur (“silver”). The Germanic word has parallels in Baltic and Slavic (Old Church Slavonic сьрєбро (sĭrebro), Lithuanian sidabras), Celtic (Celtiberian silaPur-), and outside Indo-European, in Basque zilar and Proto-Berber *a-ẓrəf, but the ultimate origin of the word is unknown.
Adjective sense 4 (“denoting a twenty-fifth anniversary”) generalized from silver wedding, itself a calque of German Silberhochzeit.
Meanings
Made from silver.
But Richmond[…]appeared to lose himself in his own reflections. Some pickled crab, which he had not touched, had been removed with a damson pie; and his sister saw, peeping around the massive silver epergne that almost obscured him from her view, that he had eaten no more than a spoonful of that either. 1959, Georgette Heyer, chapter 1, in The Unknown Ajax:
He looked round the poor room, at the distempered walls, and the bad engravings in meretricious frames, the crinkly paper and wax flowers on the chiffonier; and he thought of a room like Father Bryan's, with panelling, with cut glass, with tulips in silver pots, such a room as he had hoped to have for his own. 1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter X, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
Made from another white metal.
Having a color like silver: a shiny gray.
Denoting the twenty-fifth anniversary, especially of a wedding.
Mostly, these have been relationships of 10 or less years. However, one respondent has celebrated her silver wedding anniversary. 1994, “Mate matching” in Accent on Living, v 38, n 4 (Spring), p 52
(of commercial services) Premium, but inferior to gold.
Pertaining or relating to elderly persons.
Having the clear, musical tone of silver; soft and clear in sound.
silvery (having a color like silver) · silvern (made from silver)
Translations (121)
hy արծաթյա (made from silver) · fi hopeanvärinen (having a color/colour like silver) · vro hõbõhõnõ (made from silver) · la argenteus (made from silver) · fi hopeinen (made from silver) · eo arĝentkolora (having a color/colour like silver) · rom rupuno (made from silver) · nds-de sülvern (having a color/colour like silver) · grc ἀργύφεος (having a color/colour like silver) · bg сре́бърен (made from silver) · ru сере́бряный (made from silver) · be сярэ́браны (made from silver) · mk сребрен (made from silver) · it argentino (having a color/colour like silver) · ms perak (having a color/colour like silver) · ru сере́бряный (having a color/colour like silver) · fi hopeanvärinen (made from another white metal) · hy արծաթե (made from silver) · ta வெள்ளி (having a color/colour like silver) · sh srebrn (made from silver) · es argénteo (having a color/colour like silver) · cmn 銀色的 /银色的 (having a color/colour like silver) · nl zilverkleurig (having a color/colour like silver) · br arc'hant (having a color/colour like silver) · got 𐍃𐌹𐌻𐌿𐌱𐍂𐌴𐌹𐌽𐍃 (made from silver) · sk strieborný (made from silver) · tr gümüş (made from silver) · fi hopeinen (made from another white metal) · it argenteo (having a color/colour like silver) · sh сребрен (made from silver) · ta வெள்ளி (made from silver) · et hõbedane (made from silver) · es argentado (made from silver) · es plateado (having a color/colour like silver) · da sølvfarvet (having a color/colour like silver) · pt argentino (having a color/colour like silver) · hy արծաթե (having a color/colour like silver) · cy arian (made from silver) · grc ἀργυρόεις (made from silver) · nl zilverkleurige (having a color/colour like silver) · nds-de sülvern (made from silver) · sh сребрн (made from silver) · pt de prata (made from silver) · ar لُجَيْن (made from silver) · ka ვერცხლის (made from silver) · ar فِضِّيّ (having a color/colour like silver) · grc ἀργυροῦς (made from silver) · sh srebren (made from silver) · pl srebrny (made from silver) · es argentado (having a color/colour like silver) · ia argentin (having a color/colour like silver) · fr argenté (having a color/colour like silver) · cmn 銀的 /银的 (made from silver) · de silberfarben (having a color/colour like silver) · nb sølvfarget (having a color/colour like silver) · el ασημένιος (made from silver) · es albo (made from another white metal) · ar فِضِّيّ (made from silver) · fa نقره ای (having a color/colour like silver) · es argénteo (made from silver) · hi चाँदी (having a color/colour like silver) · hi नुकरी (having a color/colour like silver) · hu ezüst (made from silver) · ko 은빛의 (having a color/colour like silver) · nds-de sülverfarvig (having a color/colour like silver) · es blanco (made from another white metal) · ro argintiu (having a color/colour like silver) · bg сре́бърен (having a color/colour like silver) · te వెండి (having a color/colour like silver) · fi hopeinen (having a color/colour like silver) · sl srebrn (made from silver) · sk striebristý (having a color/colour like silver) · pl srebrny (having a color/colour like silver) · nl zilveren (made from silver) · fa نقرهای (made from silver) · pt prateado (having a color/colour like silver) · el αργυρός (made from silver) · ca argentat (having a color/colour like silver) · es argentino (having a color/colour like silver) · cy ariannaidd (made from silver) · vo largentik (made from silver) · uk срі́бний (made from silver) · cs stříbřitý (having a color/colour like silver) · ia argentee (having a color/colour like silver) · fr en argent (made from silver) · hy արծաթագույն (having a color/colour like silver) · cs stříbrný (having a color/colour like silver) · es albar (made from another white metal) · nds-de sülverklöört (having a color/colour like silver) · te వెండి (made from silver) · ja 銀色の (having a color/colour like silver) · grc ἀργύρειος (made from silver) · it argenteo (made from silver) · grc ἀργυροειδής (having a color/colour like silver) · de silbern (having a color/colour like silver) · hu ezüstös (having a color/colour like silver) · fi metallinen (made from another white metal) · es de plata (made from silver) · he כֶּסֶף (having a color/colour like silver) · de silbrig (having a color/colour like silver) · bg сребри́ст (having a color/colour like silver) · grc ἀργύρεος (made from silver) · de silbern (made from silver) · gu રૂપેરી (having a color/colour like silver) · cs stříbrný (made from silver) · hi चाँदी (made from silver) · pt argênteo (having a color/colour like silver) · ar لُجَيْن (having a color/colour like silver) · eo arĝenta (made from silver) · rom rupalo (having a color/colour like silver) · pt prata (having a color/colour like silver) · ru серебри́стый (having a color/colour like silver) · ca platejat (having a color/colour like silver) · txb ñikañce (made from silver) · hu ezüstszínű (having a color/colour like silver) · fa سیمگون (having a color/colour like silver) · cy ariannaidd (having a color/colour like silver) · sl srebrn (having a color/colour like silver) · fa نقره فام (having a color/colour like silver) · fa سیمین (made from silver) · de silberfarbig (having a color/colour like silver)
Etymology tree
substratebor.?
Proto-Germanic *silubrą
Proto-West Germanic *silubr
Old English seolfor
Middle English silver
English silver
Inherited from Middle English silver, selver, sulver, from Old English seolfor, from Proto-West Germanic *silubr, from Proto-Germanic *silubrą (“silver”), of uncertain origin.
cognates and etymology discussion
Cognate with Scots siller (“silver”), Saterland Frisian Säälwer (“silver”), West Frisian sulver (“silver”), Dutch zilver (“silver”), German Low German Silver, Sülver (“silver”), German Silber (“silver”), Swedish silver (“silver”), Icelandic silfur (“silver”). The Germanic word has parallels in Baltic and Slavic (Old Church Slavonic сьрєбро (sĭrebro), Lithuanian sidabras), Celtic (Celtiberian silaPur-), and outside Indo-European, in Basque zilar and Proto-Berber *a-ẓrəf, but the ultimate origin of the word is unknown.
Adjective sense 4 (“denoting a twenty-fifth anniversary”) generalized from silver wedding, itself a calque of German Silberhochzeit.
Meanings
(uncountable) A lustrous, white, metallic element, atomic number 47, atomic weight 107.87, symbol Ag.
(collective, countable, uncountable) Coins made from silver or any similar white metal.
[…] maybe two or three twenties, a dozen tens, and twenty or thirty fins. The rest is all aces and silver. 1990, David F. Friedman, Don DeNevi, A Youth in Babylon: Confessions of a Trash-film King, page 136:
(collective, countable, uncountable) Cutlery and other eating utensils, whether silver or made from some other white metal.
(collective, countable, uncountable) Any items made from silver or any other white metal.
(uncountable) A shiny gray color.
I'll need some mayonnaise and a silver tin of sardines, a banana. 2017, Sam Shepard, chapter 27, in Spy of the First Person, →ISBN, page 62:
(countable) A silver medal.
(countable, uncountable) Anything resembling silver; something shiny and white.
And next morning they found him dead, with his neck broken, in the bottom of the stone pit, with his beautiful clothes a little bloody, and foul and stained with the duckweed from the pond. But his face was a face of such happiness that, had you seen it, you would have understood indeed how that he had died happy, never knowing that cool and streaming silver for the duckweed in the pond. 1909 April 10, H[erbert] G[eorge] Wells, “[The Time Machine and Other Stories]. The Beautiful Suit.”, in The Short Stories of H. G. Wells, London: Ernest Benn Limited […], published September 1927, →OCLC, pages 162–163:
Etymology tree
substratebor.?
Proto-Germanic *silubrą
Proto-West Germanic *silubr
Old English seolfor
Middle English silver
English silver
Inherited from Middle English silver, selver, sulver, from Old English seolfor, from Proto-West Germanic *silubr, from Proto-Germanic *silubrą (“silver”), of uncertain origin.
cognates and etymology discussion
Cognate with Scots siller (“silver”), Saterland Frisian Säälwer (“silver”), West Frisian sulver (“silver”), Dutch zilver (“silver”), German Low German Silver, Sülver (“silver”), German Silber (“silver”), Swedish silver (“silver”), Icelandic silfur (“silver”). The Germanic word has parallels in Baltic and Slavic (Old Church Slavonic сьрєбро (sĭrebro), Lithuanian sidabras), Celtic (Celtiberian silaPur-), and outside Indo-European, in Basque zilar and Proto-Berber *a-ẓrəf, but the ultimate origin of the word is unknown.
Adjective sense 4 (“denoting a twenty-fifth anniversary”) generalized from silver wedding, itself a calque of German Silberhochzeit.
Meanings
To acquire a silvery colour.
Presently all the eastern sky began to silver and shine, and objects before invisible in the west—chiefly the tall towers on Mount Zion—emerged as from a shadowy depth, [...] 1880 November 12, Lew[is] Wallace, chapter IV, in Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, […], →OCLC, book sixth, page 416:
But when the moon rose and the breeze awakened, and the sedges stirred, and the cat's-paws raced across the moonlit ponds, and the far surf off Wonder Head intoned the hymn of the four winds, the trinity, earth and sky and water, became one thunderous symphony—a harmony of sound and colour silvered to a monochrome by the moon. 1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, “Silverside”, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC, page 281:
To cover with silver, or with a silvery metal.
The first attempts to silver the five-foot were made with the process already mentioned, great care being taken to filter all the solutions before use; but the film was always full of pinholes through particles lying on the surface, although the mirror was kept in motion during the whole time. 1892, Royal Astronomical Society, Memoirs of the Royal Astronomical Society, volumes 50-51, Blackwell Scientific, page 162:
to silver a pin; to silver a glass mirror plate with an amalgam of tin and mercury
To polish like silver; to impart a brightness to, like that of silver.
For here retir'd the ſinking billows ſleep, / And ſmiling calmneſs ſilver'd o'er the deep. 1725, Homer, “Book X”, in [Alexander Pope], transl., The Odyssey of Homer. […], volume III, London: […] Bernard Lintot, →OCLC, page 17, lines 107–108:
To make hoary, or white, like silver.
Remote from cities liv'd a Swain, / Unvex'd with all the cares of gain, / His head was ſilver'd o'er with age, / And long experience made him ſage; [...] 1727, [John] Gay, “Introduction to the Fables. The Shepherd and the Philosopher.”, in Fables, 2nd edition, volume I, London: […] J[acob] Tonson and J. Watts, published 1728, →OCLC: