Or
King James Dictionary [1]
OR, a termination of Latin nouns, is a contraction of vir, a man, or from the same radix. The same word vir, is in our mother tongue, wer, and from this we have the English termination er.
It denotes an agent, as in actor, creditor. We annex it to many words of English origin, as in lessor, as we do er to words of Latin and Greek origin, as in astronomer, laborer. In general, or is annexed to words of Latin, and er to those of English origin.
OR, conj. It seems that or is a mere contraction of other.
A connective that marks an alternative. "You may read or may write " that is, you may do one of the things at your pleasure, but not both. It corresponds to either. You may either ride to London, or to Windsor. It often connects a series of words or propositions, presenting a choice of either. He may study law or medicine or divinity, or he may enter into trade.
Or sometimes begins a sentence, but in this case it expresses an alternative with the foregoing sentence. Matthew 7,9 .
In poetry, or is sometimes used for either.
For thy vast bounties are so numberless, that them or to conceal or else to tell is equally impossible.
Or is often used to express an alternative of terms, definitions or explanations of the same thing in different words. Thus we say, a thing is a square, or a figure under four equal sides and angles.
Or ever. In this phrase, or is supposed to be a corruption of ere.
OR, in heraldry, gold. L. aurum.
Webster's Dictionary [2]
(1): ( conj.) A particle that marks an alternative; as, you may read or may write, - that is, you may do one of the things at your pleasure, but not both. It corresponds to either. You may ride either to London or to Windsor. It often connects a series of words or propositions, presenting a choice of either; as, he may study law, or medicine, or divinity, or he may enter into trade.
(2): ( prep. & adv.) Ere; before; sooner than.
(3): ( n.) Yellow or gold color, - represented in drawing or engraving by small dots.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia [3]
ôr : The word is used once for either ( 1 Samuel 26:10 ), and is still in poetic use in this sense; as in, "Without or wave or wind" (Coleridge); "Or the bakke or some bone he breketh in his dzouthe" ( Piers Plowman ( B ), VII, 93; compare Merchant of Venice , III, ii, 65). It is also used with "ever" for before ( Psalm 90:2; Ecclesiasticus 18:19), which the American Standard Revised Version substitutes in Ecclesiastes 12:6 (compare Ecclesiastes 12:1 , Ecclesiastes 12:2 ); Song of Solomon 6:12; Daniel 6:24 .
