Ur

¹ American  

[ur, oor] / ɜr, ʊər /

noun

1. an ancient Sumerian city on the Euphrates, in S Iraq: extensive excavations, especially of royal tombs.

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ur- ² American  

1. variant of uro-.

   uranalysis.

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ur- ³ American  

1. variant of uro- before a vowel.

   urite.

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ur- ⁴ American  

(sometimes initial capital letter)

1. a combining form meaning “earliest, original,” used in words denoting the primal stage of a historical or cultural entity or phenomenon.

   ur-civilization; urtext.

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UR ¹ British  

abbreviation

1. you are

2. your

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Ur ² British  

/ ɜː /

noun

1. an ancient city of Sumer located on a former channel of the Euphrates

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Ur- ³ British  

combining form

1. original, primitive

   Ursprache

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ur- ⁴ British  

combining form

1. a variant of uro- 1 uro- 2

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Usage

What does ur- mean? Ur- is a combining form used like a prefix that has two unrelated senses. The first is “urine.” It is used occasionally in medical terms, especially in pathology. In some rare instances, like urate, ur- specifically denotes uric acid, a compound found in urine. This ur- comes from Greek oûron, meaning “urine.” Other combining forms that mean "urine," such as urino- and urin-, come from the Latin for "urine," ūrīn(a). The second is “earliest” or “original.” It is frequently used or appendaged to a wide variety of terms. In some instances, it is stylized with a hyphen after the form, as in ur-fascism. Because the German language capitalizes nouns, the combining form ur- sometimes appears as Ur-, as in Urheimat. This ur- comes from Old High German ur-, meaning “thoroughly.”Despite popular misconception, the name Uranus, a planet named for a Roman god, does not use the combining form ur- to mean "urine” or “earliest.” Discover more about the origins of this name at our entry for Uranus. The chemical compound uranium is also named after this figure from Greco-Roman mythology. What are variants of ur-?The “urine” sense of ur- are variants of uro-, which loses its -o- when combined with words or word elements beginning with vowels. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use uro- article. Note that uro- can also mean “tail.” It is occasionally used in scientific terms, especially in anatomy and zoology. This uro- ultimately comes from Greek ourá, meaning “tail.”

Etymology

Origin of ur-

< German ur-, Middle High German, Old High German; cognate with Old English or-

Example Sentences

The court official said a warrant was out for the arrest of team manager Mujeeb Ur Rehman, a Pakistani national, who was also implicated in the case.

From Barron's • Jan. 28, 2026

The region's city-states -- Ur, Uruk, and Lagash among them -- developed complex political and religious systems that became the blueprint for later societies.

From Science Daily • Oct. 27, 2025

First single Kiss Ur Face Forever is a grunge-pop anthem to physical infatuation, while the follow-up Little Chaos is a frantic reflection of an unsettled mind.

From BBC • Oct. 6, 2024

The “Get Ur Freak On” singer wowed fans again with dancers in glow-in-the-dark costumes, projections of spaceships and an animation of Elliott dressed as an astronaut and grinning as she glides through the cosmos.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 20, 2024

From my pants pocket, my phone vibrated, and when I checked it William had sent me a text. “good movie. Ur mom mad?”

From "The Book of Unknown Americans" by Cristina Henríquez