Wordsmith.org: the magic of words


A.Word.A.Day

About | Media | Search | Contact  


Home

Today's Word

Yesterday's Word

Archives

FAQ



Jun 19, 2012
This week's theme
Back-formations

This week's words
adulate
sere
ablate
esthesia
auscultate

Discuss
Feedback
RSS/XML
Bookmark and Share Facebook Twitter Digg MySpace Bookmark and Share
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu Garg

sere

PRONUNCIATION:
(seer)

MEANING:
noun: An intermediate stage or a series of stages in the ecological succession of a community. Example: forest, forest destroyed by fire, grass, brush, young trees, mature trees.
adjective: dry; withered.

ETYMOLOGY:
For noun: Back-formation from series, from Latin serere (to connect). Ultimately from the Indo-European root ser- (to line up), that is also the source of words such as assert, desert (to abandon), desert (a dry region with little vegetation), sort, consort, and sorcerer. Earliest documented use: 1916; series is from 1611.
For adjective: Variant spelling of Old English sear (dry). Earliest documented use: 824.

USAGE:
"The duration of an organism's presence in a sere depends on its ability to persist, even as the environment is changing."
Lawrence Walker; The Biology of Disturbed Habitats; Oxford University Press; 2012.

See more usage examples of sere in Vocabulary.com's dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
I don't know what your destiny will be, but one thing I do know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve. -Albert Schweitzer, philosopher, physician, musician, Nobel laureate (1875-1965)

We need your help

Help us continue to spread the magic of words to readers everywhere

Donate

Subscriber Services
Awards | Stats | Links | Privacy Policy
Contribute | Advertise

© 1994-2024 Wordsmith