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eras

 - 3 dictionary results
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e⋅ra

  [eer-uh, er-uh]
Use eras in a Sentence
–noun
1. a period of time marked by distinctive character, events, etc.: The use of steam for power marked the beginning of an era.
2. the period of time to which anything belongs or is to be assigned: She was born in the era of hansoms and gaslight.
3. a system of chronologic notation reckoned from a given date: The era of the Romans was based upon the time the city of Rome was founded.
4. a point of time from which succeeding years are numbered, as at the beginning of a system of chronology: Caesar died many years before our era.
5. a date or an event forming the beginning of any distinctive period: The year 1492 marks an era in world history.
6. Geology. a major division of geologic time composed of a number of periods.

Origin:
1605–15; < LL aera fixed date, era, epoch (from which time is reckoned), prob. special use of L aera counters (pl. of aes piece of metal, money, brass); c. Goth aiz, OE ār ore, Skt ayas metal

Synonyms:
1. See age.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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e·ra   (îr'ə, ěr'ə)   
n.  

  1. A period of time as reckoned from a specific date serving as the basis of its chronological system.

    1. A period of time characterized by particular circumstances, events, or personages: the Colonial era of U.S. history; the Reagan era.

    2. A point that marks the beginning of such a period of time. See Synonyms at period.

  3. The longest division of geologic time, made up of one or more periods.


[Late Latin aera, from Latin, counters, pl. of aes, aer-, bronze coin; see ayes- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

era 
1615, from L.L. æra, era "an era or epoch from which time is reckoned," probably identical with L. æra "counters used for calculation," pl. of æs (gen. æris) "brass, money" (see ore). The L. word's use in chronology said to have begun in 5c. Spain (where, for some reason unknown to historians, the local era began 38 B.C.E.; some say it was because of a tax levied that year). Like epoch, in Eng. it originally meant "the starting point of an age;" meaning "system of chronological notation" is c.1646; that of "historical period" is 1741.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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