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nerve
[ nurv ]
/ nɜrv /
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noun
verb (used with object), nerved, nerv·ing.
to give strength, vigor, or courage to: Encouragement had nerved him for the struggle.
OTHER WORDS FOR nerve
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Idioms about nerve
Origin of nerve
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English: “nerve, tendon,” from Latin nervus “sinew, tendon”; akin to Greek neûron (see neuron); replacing Middle English nerf, from Middle French, from Latin, as above
Words nearby nerve
Neruda, Pablo, Nerva, nerval, nervate, nervation, nerve, nerve block, nerve cell, nerve center, nerve centre, nerve cord
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use nerve in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for nerve
nerve
/ (nɜːv) /
noun
verb (tr)
to give courage to (oneself); steel (oneself)
to provide with nerve or nerves
See also nerves
Word Origin for nerve
C16: from Latin nervus; related to Greek neuron; compare Sanskrit snāvan sinew
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
Scientific definitions for nerve
nerve
[ nûrv ]
Any of the bundles of fibers made up of neurons that carry sensory and motor information throughout the body in the form of electrical impulses. Afferent nerves carry information to the central nervous system, and efferent nerves carry information from the central nervous system to the muscles, organs, and glands. Efferent nerves include the nerves of the peripheral nervous system, which control voluntary motor activity and of the autonomic nervous system, which controls involuntary motor activity.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Cultural definitions for nerve
nerve
A bundle of fibers composed of neurons that connects the body parts and organs to the central nervous system and carries impulses from one part of the body to another.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Other Idioms and Phrases with nerve
nerve
see bundle of nerves; get on someone's nerves; get up (one's nerve); have a nerve; lose one's nerve; of all the nerve; war of nerves.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.