our

[ ouuhr, ou-er; unstressed ahr ]

/ aʊər, ˈaʊ ər; unstressed ɑr /

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pronoun

(a form of the possessive case of we used as an attributive adjective): Our team is going to win. Do you mind our going on ahead?

QUIZ

SHALL WE PLAY A "SHALL" VS. "SHOULD" CHALLENGE?

Should you take this quiz on “shall” versus “should”? It should prove to be a quick challenge!

Question 1 of 6

Which form is used to state an obligation or duty someone has?

shall

should

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Compare ours.

Origin of our

before 900; Middle English oure,Old English ūre, suppletive genitive plural of wēwe from same base as ūsus

grammar notes for our

See me.

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH our

are, hour, our

Other definitions for our (2 of 2)

-our

British.

variant of -or¹.

usage note for -our

See -or¹.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use our in a sentence

Yet American minimalism, isolationism, realism, mind-our-own-business-ism—whatever you want to call it—is cyclical.
Rand Paul vs. the Real World|James Kirchick|September 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
As you know, I wrote in our/your anthology: “All stories are, in some way, war stories.”
Colum McCann Talks New Novel ‘TransAtlantic’ and Narrative4|Phil Klay|June 14, 2013|DAILY BEAST
My boyfriend and I were super-passionate about making out, but the losing-our-virginity thing was overwhelming.
How 10 Porn Stars Lost Their Virginity|Aurora Snow|May 7, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Romney purports to like 30 Rock, but I don't believe anything released by staffs in these let's-humanize-our-guy press releases.
Does Mitt Romney Know How to Laugh?|Michael Tomasky|May 21, 2012|DAILY BEAST

On the other hand, when it comes to the upper-crusty, too-rich-to-feel-our-pain issue, Romney seems to have the edge over Kerry.
Mitt Romney: The GOP’s Own John Kerry, or Is He More an Al Gore?|Michelle Cottle|January 14, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Arm′our-bear′er; Arm′ourer, a maker or repairer of, or one who has the charge of, armour.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D)|Various
The piscina probably belonged to the chantry of Our-Lady-in-the-Lady-loft.
Bell's Cathedrals: The Cathedral Church of Ripon|Cecil Walter Charles Hallett
He generally talks like one of those continued-in-our-next yarns in the magazines.
Shavings|Joseph C. Lincoln
For understanding the Prophecies, we are, in the first place, to acquaint our-selves with the figurative language of the Prophets.
Observations upon the Prophecies of Daniel, and the Apocalypse of St. John|Isaac Newton
March-of-mind became to many almost as wearisome a cry as wisdom-of-our-ancestors had been.
The Life of William Ewart Gladstone, Vol. 1 (of 3)|John Morley

British Dictionary definitions for our (1 of 2)

our

/ (aʊə) /

determiner

of, belonging to, or associated in some way with usour best vodka; our parents are good to us

belonging to or associated with all people or people in generalour nearest planet is Venus

a formal word for my used by editors or other writers, and monarchs

informal (often sarcastic) used instead of yourare our feet hurting?

dialect belonging to the family of the speakerit's our Sandra's birthday tomorrow

Word Origin for our

Old English ūre (genitive plural), from us; related to Old French, Old Saxon ūser, Old High German unsēr, Gothic unsara

British Dictionary definitions for our (2 of 2)

-our

suffix forming nouns

indicating state, condition, or activitybehaviour; labour

Word Origin for -our

in Old French -eur, from Latin -or, noun suffix

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012