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nor
norconjunction(used in negative phrases, especially after neither, to introduce the second member in a series, or any subsequent member).
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NOR
NORnouna Boolean operator that returns a positive result when both operands are negative.
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nor-
nor-a combining form used in the names of chemical compounds which are the normal or parent forms of the compound denoted by the base words.
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nor.
nor.abbreviationnorth.
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Nor.
Nor.abbreviationNorman.
nor
1 Americanconjunction
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(used in negative phrases, especially after neither, to introduce the second member in a series, or any subsequent member).
Neither he nor I will be there. They won't wait for you, nor for me, nor for anybody.
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(used to continue the force of a negative, as not, no, never, etc., occurring in a preceding clause).
He left and I never saw him again, nor did I regret it.
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(used after an affirmative clause, or as a continuative, in the sense ofand not ).
They are happy, nor need we worry.
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Older Use. than.
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Archaic. (used without a preceding neither, the negative force of which is understood).
He nor I was there.
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Archaic. (used instead of neither as correlative to a followingnor ).
Nor he nor I was there.
noun
abbreviation
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north.
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northern.
abbreviation
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Norman.
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North.
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Northern.
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Norway.
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Norwegian.
abbreviation
conjunction
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(used to join alternatives) and not
neither measles nor mumps
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(and) not … either
they weren't talented — nor were they particularly funny
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dialect than
better nor me
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poetic neither
nor wind nor rain
combining form
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indicating that a chemical compound is derived from a specified compound by removal of a group or groups
noradrenaline
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indicating that a chemical compound is a normal isomer of a specified compound
Grammar
See neither.
Etymology
Origin of nor1
1300–50; Middle English, contraction of nother, Old English nōther, equivalent to ne not + ōther (contraction of ōhwæther ) either; cf. or 1
Origin of NOR2
1955–60
Origin of nor-3
Short for normal
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Sixteen years ago, Abdi Nor Iftin was a Somali refugee living in one of the roughest slums in Kenya when he found out he had won the lottery of a lifetime.
From BBC • Jul. 2, 2026
Nor are the formerly enslaved Americans who forced the nation to confront the grotesque contradiction between slavery and constitutional liberty.
From Slate • Jul. 2, 2026
“This case is not about whether artists should have rights. They absolutely should. Nor is it about preventing Fuerza Regida from making music,” wrote Trauben.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 29, 2026
Nor did his name appear on legal papers.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 16, 2026
Nor is the absence of fractures and cuts on an ancient skeleton conclusive proof that the person to whom the skeleton belonged did not die a violent death.
From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.