Deer Once Meant Any Wild Animal
A deer is a hoofed grazing mammal. The Old English word covered every wild beast.
A deer is a hoofed grazing mammal, the male usually antlered. Old English *deor* meant any wild animal, and the modern narrow sense is a later specialisation. Shakespeare still uses the old breadth in King Lear, where a character eats *mice and rats and such small deer*. German *Tier* keeps the original meaning of animal in general, so the two languages preserve different halves of one word.
- A hoofed mammal. *A herd of deer.*
- Any wild animal (archaic). *Small deer.*
- Venison — its meat. *Venison.*
- Antlers — shed yearly. *Antlers.*
- Old English — *deor*, an animal. *The source.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | deer | A deer. |
| Plural | deer | Six deer. |
| Male | stag | A stag. |
| Female | doe | A doe. |
| German | Tier | An animal. |
- Deer grazed at the wood's edge.Animal.
- Deer once meant any beast.History.
- German Tier still does.Comparison.
Antlers and horns are different
- Antlers are bone and are shed and regrown every year
- Horns are keratin over a bony core and are permanent
- Deer have antlers; cattle, sheep and goats have horns
- Antler growth is among the fastest tissue growth known in mammals
- Reindeer are the only deer whose females routinely carry antlers
Old English *deor*, an animal or beast, of Germanic origin, related to German *Tier*.
Did deer always mean this animal?
No. Old English deor meant any wild animal. German Tier still carries that general sense.
What is the difference between antlers and horns?
Antlers are bone, shed and regrown each year. Horns are permanent keratin over a bony core.