inter

1 of 2

verb

in·​ter in-ˈtər How to pronounce inter (audio)
interred; interring

transitive verb

: to deposit (a dead body) in the earth or in a tomb

inter-

2 of 2

prefix

1
: between : among : in the midst
intercrop
interpenetrate
interstellar
2
: reciprocal
interrelation
: reciprocally
intermarry
3
: located between
interstation
4
: carried on between
international
5
: occurring between
interborough
: intervening
interglacial
6
: shared by, involving, or derived from two or more
interfaith
7
: between the limits of : within
intertropical
8
: existing between
intercommunal
intercompany

Examples of inter in a Sentence

Verb a burial site where people have been interred for over a thousand years the soldier was interred with great honors at Arlington National Cemetery
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Everyone played, from guards in temples who scratched game boards into the ground to kings who were interred with Senet boards in their tombs, Crist says. Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 16 July 2024 And a family friend who was killed in Saigon defending the U.S. Embassy, Douglas Doody, is interred there. Washington Post, 18 June 2024 Nearly one-quarter of those were closely related to at least one other child interred in the chultún, and the related children had similar diets, so were likely raised in the same household. Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 12 June 2024 While many of the temple’s members are interred at the East Lawn Memorial Park in Elk Grove or Sacramento Memorial Lawn, Hamasaki said some members are choosing a relatively new option — to be interred at the church. Esther Sun, Sacramento Bee, 7 July 2024 See all Example Sentences for inter 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'inter.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English enteren, from Anglo-French enterrer, from Vulgar Latin *interrare, from in- + Latin terra earth — more at terrace entry 1

Prefix

borrowed from Latin, prefixal use of inter "among, between," going back to Indo-European *h1en-ter- (whence also Old Irish eter, iter "between," Old Welsh ithr, Breton etre, entre, all from Celtic *enter; Sanskrit antár "within," Avestan aṇtarə); from a nominal derivative *h1enter-o- "part located inside," Old Norse iðr, innr, indr "entrails," iðrar (feminine plural) "bowels," Greek éntera (neuter plural) "intestines," Armenian ənderkʼ (plural), Sanskrit ántara- "located inside," Avestan antara-

Note: Indo-European *h1en-ter- is formed from the locational particle *h1en- "in" (see in entry 1) and the suffix of opposition and contrast -ter-. A zero-grade derivative *h1n̥-tér- is reflected in Old Saxon undar "between," Old High German untar, though in Germanic this etymon appears to have merged completely with outcomes of *(H)n̥-dher- "below, under" (see under entry 1).

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of inter was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near inter

Cite this Entry

“Inter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inter. Accessed 27 Jul. 2024.

Kids Definition

inter

1 of 2 verb
in·​ter in-ˈtər How to pronounce inter (audio)
interred; interring

inter-

2 of 2 prefix
1
: between : among : in the midst
interlock
interstellar
2
: reciprocal
interrelate
: reciprocally
interact
3
: located or occurring between
interlining
4
: carried on between
international
5
: shared by or involving two or more
interfaith
Etymology

Verb

from the Latin phrase in terra "in the earth"

Prefix

derived from Latin inter "between, among"

More from Merriam-Webster on inter

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