EST

¹ American  

Or E.S.T.,

abbreviation

1. Eastern Standard Time.

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-est ² American  

1. a suffix forming the superlative degree of adjectives and adverbs.

   warmest; fastest; soonest.

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-est ³ American  

1. a native English suffix formerly used to form the second person singular indicative of verbs.

   knowest; sayest; goest.

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est. ⁴ American  

abbreviation

1. established.

2. estate.

3. estimate.

4. estimated.

5. estuary.

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EST ¹ British  

abbreviation

1. Eastern Standard Time

2. electric-shock treatment

3. Estonia (international car registration)

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est ² British  

abbreviation

1. Also: estab.  established

2. estimate(d)

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-est ³ British  

suffix

1. forming the superlative degree of adjectives and adverbs

   shortest

   fastest

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-est ⁴ British  

suffix

1. forming the archaic second person singular present and past indicative tense of verbs

   thou goest

   thou hadst

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est ⁵ British  

/ ɛst /

noun

1. a treatment intended to help people towards psychological growth, in which they spend many hours in large groups, deprived of food and water and hectored by stewards

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Etymology

Origin of -est²

Middle English; Old English -est, -ost. Compare Greek -isto-

Origin of -est³

Middle English; Old English -est, -ast, -st, 2nd person singular present indicative endings of some verbs ( -s earlier verbal ending + -t, by assimilation from thū thou ¹ ) and 2nd person singular past endings of weak verbs (earlier -es + -t )

Compare meaning

How does est compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• CDT vs. EST
• EST vs. EDT
• PST vs. EST
• CST vs. EST

Example Sentences

EST on Thursday, Feb. 12, and 5:15 a.m.

From Science Daily • Feb. 2, 2026

Analysts surveyed by The Wall Street Journal before the report’s release at noon EST had widely expected ending stocks to sink across the board, with 2025 crop yields lower amid larger projections for export sales.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 12, 2026

US fans can watch it at 20:00 EST on 31 December, and for a big-screen, communal experience, they can see it in 500 cinemas across the US and Canada.

From BBC • Dec. 23, 2025

EST in the Barus & Holley engineering and physics building, a space crowded with students preparing for final exams.

From Salon • Dec. 14, 2025

End of mission called at 10:46 hours EST.

From "Adrift" by Paul Griffin