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Synonyms

ore

1 American  
[awr, ohr] / ɔr, oʊr /

noun

  1. a metal-bearing mineral or rock, or a native metal, that can be mined at a profit.

  2. a mineral or natural product serving as a source of some nonmetallic substance, as sulfur.

öre 2 American  
[œ-ruh] / ˈœ rə /
Also øre

noun

plural

öre

  1. a bronze coin of Norway, one 100th of a krone.

  2. a zinc or bronze coin of Denmark, one 100th of a krone.

  3. a bronze coin of Sweden, one 100th of a krona.

  4. a fractional currency of the Faeroe Islands, one 100th of a krona.

Ore. 3 American  

abbreviation

  1. Oregon.

öre 1 British  
/ ˈørə /

noun

  1. a Scandinavian monetary unit worth one hundredth of a Swedish krona and ( øre ) one hundredth of a Danish and Norwegian krone

"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
ore 2 British  
/ ɔː /

noun

  1. any naturally occurring mineral or aggregate of minerals from which economically important constituents, esp metals, can be extracted

"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
ore Scientific  
/ ôr /

  1. A naturally occurring mineral or rock from which a valuable or useful substance, especially a metal, can be extracted at a reasonable cost.

ore Cultural  

  1. In geology, a mineral that contains a commercially useful material, such as gold or uranium.

Discover More

Ore deposits are generally mined, and the ore is processed to recover the material.

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”; aureus ( def. )

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.

Weak profitability, however, limits the pace of further increases on iron ore prices, analysts say.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 24, 2026

He will also have a tailwind from a rebound in iron ore prices and a strong copper outlook, he adds.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 19, 2026

Because of this, most lightweight vehicle parts are still made from primary aluminum produced from mined ore.

From Science Daily • Mar. 10, 2026

The landslide struck Rubaya, the country's biggest source of coltan - an ore vital in the electronics industry - in the rebel-controlled east on Tuesday following heavy rains.

From BBC • Mar. 5, 2026

Zooming past the white water and onto the vein of ore, they sighted the ruins just as the sky was beginning to change.

From "Uglies" by Scott Westerfeld

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.