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wider. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
wider, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
wider in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
wider you have here. The definition of the word
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English
Etymology
From Middle English widder, widdur, widere, from Old English widdra; equivalent to wide + -er.
Pronunciation
Adjective
wider
- comparative form of wide: more wide
Adverb
wider
- comparative form of wide: more wide
Anagrams
German
Etymology
From Middle High German wider, from Old High German widar, from Proto-West Germanic *wiþr, from Proto-Germanic *wiþrą (“against, toward”). The same word as wieder (“again”) with artificial orthographic distinction. Hence cognate with Dutch weer, English wither.
Pronunciation
Preposition
wider
- (formal, literary) against
- Synonym: gegen
Usage notes
- In contemporary German, wider is found in compounds (see wider-) and otherwise mainly in a few set phrases. Due to its rarity it is sometimes hypercorrectly construed with the genitive case; thus instead of wider besseres Wissen (“against one's better knowledge”) one will sometimes read or hear wider besseren Wissens.
Derived terms
Further reading
- “wider” in Duden online
- “wider” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache