ore

1 of 4

noun (1)

ˈȯr 

often attributive

1

: a naturally occurring mineral containing a valuable constituent (such as metal) for which it is mined and worked

2

: a source from which valuable matter is extracted

ore

2 of 4

noun (2)

ˈər-ə 

plural ore

: a monetary subunit of the krona (Sweden) and krone see krona, krone at Money Table

Ore

3 of 4

abbreviation

variants or Oreg

Oregon

øre

4 of 4

noun (3)

ˈər-ə 

plural øre

1

: a Danish monetary unit equal to ¹/₁₀₀ krone see krone at Money Table

also : a coin representing one Danish øre

Note: Denmark's Faeroe Islands and Greenland also use an øre.

2

: a Norwegian monetary unit equal to ¹/₁₀₀ krone see krone at Money Table

also : a coin representing one Norwegian øre

Examples of ore in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Cameroon sits atop significant reserves of oil, natural gas, cobalt, bauxite, iron ore, gold and diamonds, making resource extraction one of the pillars of its economy. —ABC News, 16 Apr. 2026

The facility is the first of its kind in North America, converting spodumene ore directly into battery-grade lithium hydroxide. —John Pacenti, USA Today, 15 Apr. 2026

The facility being built at Fortescue’s Pilbara ore site consists of a mix of solar and wind energy and boasts up to 5 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of battery energy storage system (BESS). —Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 14 Apr. 2026

So aluminum newly produced from ore, as that from the Persian Gulf, is a smaller fraction of the total marketable aluminum available than for steel. —Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 12 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English or, oor, partly from Old English ōra ore; partly from Old English ār brass; akin to Old High German ēr bronze, Latin aes copper, bronze

Noun (2)

Swedish öre & Danish & Norwegian øre

Noun (3)

Danish & Norwegian, from Latin aureus a gold coin

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1884, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing ore

• ore dressing

Rhymes for ore

• boar
• boer
• bore
• chore
• cor
• core
• corps
• crore
• door
• drawer
• floor
• flor

Kids Definition

ore

1 of 2 noun

ˈō(ə)r 

ˈȯ(ə)r

: a mineral mined to obtain a substance that it contains

iron ore

ore

2 of 2 noun

ˈər-ə

plural ore

: a unit of value equal to ¹⁄₁₀₀ krona or ¹⁄₁₀₀ krone

Etymology

Noun

Swedish öre and Danish and Norwegian øre