Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web

western

 - 3 dictionary results

west⋅ern

[wes-tern]
–adjective
1. lying toward or situated in the west: our company's western office.
2. directed or proceeding toward the west: a western migration.
3. coming or originating from the west, as a wind.
4. (often initial capital letter) of, pertaining to, living in, or characteristic of the West, esp. the western U.S.: a Western ranch.
5. (usually initial capital letter) Occidental: to adopt Western dress.
6. (usually initial capital letter) of or pertaining to the non-Communist countries of Europe and the Americas: Western trade agreements.
7. (initial capital letter) of or pertaining to the Western Church.
–noun
8. (often initial capital letter) a story, movie, or radio or television play about the U.S. West of the 19th century.
9. western sandwich.
10. a person or thing from a western region or country.

Origin:
bef. 1050; 1905–10 for def. 8; ME, OE westerne, equiv. to west west + -erne -ern
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To western
west·ern   (wěs'tərn)   
adj.  
  1. Situated in, toward, or facing the west.

  2. Coming from the west: western breezes.

  3. Native to or growing in the west.

  4. often Western Of, relating to, or characteristic of western regions or the West.

  5. Western Of, relating to, or descended from those Christian churches that use or formerly used Latin as their liturgical language.

n.  often Western A novel, film, television program, or other dramatic work including themes, characters, or settings characteristic of the American West, especially of the late 1800s.

[Middle English, from Old English westerne; see wes-pero- in Indo-European roots.]
west'ern·ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

western  (adj.)
"toward or of the west," O.E. westerne (see west). The noun meaning "book or movie about the Old West" is first attested 1909.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Search another word or see western on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us: