mere

¹ American  

[meer] / mɪər /

adjective

superlative

merest

1. being nothing more nor better than.

   a mere pittance;

   He is still a mere child.

2. Obsolete.

   1. pure and unmixed, as wine, a people, or a language.

   2. fully as much as what is specified; completely fulfilled or developed; absolute.

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mere ² American  

[meer] / mɪər /

noun

1. Chiefly British Dialect. a lake or pond.

2. Obsolete. any body of sea water.

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mere ³ American  

[meer] / mɪər /

Or mear

noun

British Dialect.

1. a boundary or boundary marker.

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mère ⁴ American  

[mer, mair] / mɛr, mɛər /

noun

French.

plural

mères

1. mother.

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-mere ⁵ American  

1. a combining form meaning “part,” used in the formation of compound words.

   blastomere.

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mere ¹ British  

/ mɪə /

noun

1. archaic a lake or marsh

2. obsolete the sea or an inlet of it

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-mere ² British  

combining form

1. indicating a part or division

   blastomere

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mere ³ British  

/ ˈmɛrɪ /

noun

1. a short flat striking weapon

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mere ⁴ British  

/ mɪə /

adjective

1. being nothing more than something specified

   she is a mere child

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mere ⁵ British  

/ mɪə /

noun

1. archaic a boundary or boundary marker

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–mere Scientific  

1. A suffix meaning “part” or “segment,” as in blastomere, one of the cells that form a blastula.

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Usage

What does -mere mean? The combining form -mere is used like a suffix meaning “part.” It is often used in scientific terms, especially in biology and anatomy. The form -mere comes from Greek méros, meaning “part” or “portion.” From this same source, we also get the combining forms -mer and -merous. Want to know more? Check out our Words That Use entries for both forms.

Related Words

Mere, bare imply a scant sufficiency. They are often interchangeable, but mere frequently means no more than (enough). Bare suggests scarcely as much as (enough). Thus a mere livelihood means enough to live on but no more; a bare livelihood means scarcely enough to live on.

Other Word Forms

• -meric combining form

Etymology

Origin of mere¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English mer(e) “pure, clear, unmixed,” from Old French mier, mer, from Latin merus “pure, unmixed, simple, mere”

Origin of mere²

First recorded before 900; Middle English mere, mer, meire, Old English mer, mære “sea, ocean, lake, pond, well, cistern,” cognate with German Meer, Old Norse marr, Gothic marei, Old Irish muir, Latin mare

Origin of mere³

First recorded before 900; Middle English mere, mer, merre, Old English mǣre, gemǣre; cognate with Old Norse mæri “boundary, border land”; akin to Latin mūrus “defensive wall, city wall, boundary wall”

Origin of -mere⁵

Combining form representing Greek méros

Explanation

Mere means pure and simple, nothing more and nothing less. If the mere mention of someone's name makes you happy, then just hearing his name — and that alone — is enough to make you smile. Mere can have a little irony attached. If you introduce yourself as "a mere student," when you’re announcing your astounding invention, you're contrasting your lowly status with the enormity of your invention. This kind of mere comes from the Latin for "undiluted." Mere has a homograph — a completely different word that's spelled the same — and this mere means a lake or a pond. It’s related to the Dutch word meer — there’s lots of water in Holland.

Example Sentences

Totalitarian abuses of power and the banal ascendancy of evil aren’t stopped with mere pity, she maintained, but with thoughtfulness.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 12, 2026

But the director, who wrote his adaptation in collaboration with Philippe Piazzo, also isn’t content with mere novelistic faithfulness to an author whose traces of colonial allegory in “The Stranger” have often been found problematic.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026

Conversely, critics have been the ones quick to deem the film mere sensationalism, seemingly clinging to preconceived notions about how certain themes should be talked about within the medium.

From Salon • Apr. 9, 2026

In their disgust with the traditional media, revealed in survey after survey, their feelings are perhaps founded on more than mere prejudice.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026

She had used this same quill many times before without complaint, but the mere thought of the gleaming new fountain pen made it seem hopelessly old-fashioned, like a prop from a play set long ago.

From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood

Related Words

• bare
• minor
• pure
• sheer
• simple