ore
1 Americannoun
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a metal-bearing mineral or rock, or a native metal, that can be mined at a profit.
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a mineral or natural product serving as a source of some nonmetallic substance, as sulfur.
noun
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a bronze coin of Norway, one 100th of a krone.
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a zinc or bronze coin of Denmark, one 100th of a krone.
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a bronze coin of Sweden, one 100th of a krona.
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a fractional currency of the Faeroe Islands, one 100th of a krona.
abbreviation
noun
noun
Discover More
Ore deposits are generally mined, and the ore is processed to recover the material.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ore1
before 900; conflation of Middle English ore, Old English ōra ore, unreduced metal; and Middle English or(e) ore, metal, Old English ār brass, cognate with Old Saxon, Old High German ēr, Old Norse eir, Gothic aiz; compare Latin aes bronze, coin, money
Origin of öre2
First recorded in 1600–10; ultimately from Latin aureus “a gold coin of ancient Rome”; see aureus ( def. )
Explanation
Ore is a rock that contains minerals like iron, gold, or lead. The seven dwarfs in the movie "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" worked mining ore. Another meaning of ore is a Swedish unit of money. The krona is made up of 100 ore. In this use, ore is usually spelled with an umlaut over the o — öre. In English, ore is most commonly used to mean a material from which valuable metals or gems can be extracted. In Old English, ora means unwrought metal and ar means bronze. Both root words are thought to have influenced this sense of ore.
Vocabulary lists containing ore
Gold Rush: Mining and Metals
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Essential Three-Letter Words, Part 1
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Natural Resources and the Environment - Introductory
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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.
Now the price of the former is four öre, about one cent, and of the latter a half cent.
From Norwegian Life by Clough, Ethlyn T.
"I will give you two öre for your thoughts, if they are worth it," her father said at last.
From Gerda in Sweden by McDonald, Etta Austin Blaisdell
A good filet de bœuf costs about 90 öre.
From The Gourmet's Guide to Europe by Newnham-Davis, Lieut.-Col. (Nathaniel)
The öre coin has no distinct head or tail, so the Skipper named one side heads, and tossed.
From Three in Norway by Two of Them by Clutterbuck, Walter J.
"It costs five öre to go up in the lift, and three öre to come down," she replied.
From Gerda in Sweden by McDonald, Etta Austin Blaisdell
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.