neighbourly
/ˈneɪbəli/NAY-bur-lee
UK form converted from the US by rule · unchecked/ˈneɪbɚli/NAY-bur-lee
Meaninglike a neighbour
Common meaning: friendly and helpful
Tap a word part to explore
- neighnearSkeat, Etymological Dictionary (1898), p. 390 · scan
- bourfarmer, dwellerSkeat, Etymological Dictionary (1898), p. 390 · scan
- lyadverb ending: in a way
‘near’ + ‘farmer, dweller’ → neighbourly
Journey through time
Neither part’s path through time is traced in our sources yet; each root is shown from its dictionary entry.
neigh Old English nēah “near” · path not traced
bour Old English gebūr “farmer, dweller” · path not traced
Parts join in Old English as nēahgebūr.
Sources & notes
Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.
Pronunciation
- UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
- No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
- US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
- No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.
Origin: Formed in English from neighbour + -ly.
Dictionary: Skeat (1898), NEIGHBOUR, p.390 · scan
Source words
- nēah + gebūr Old English · source word “near + farmer, dweller”
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