Other

Part of speech: adjective, pronoun

Pronunciation: /ˈʌðə/

Definitions

1. Different from the one or ones already mentioned or implied
2. Different from what has been previously identified or specified
3. Distinct from the person, thing, or group previously referred to or known

Etymology: The most surprising fact is that English "other" is not related to the French "autre" or Spanish "otro" despite looking alike. Those come from Latin "alter", while English "other" descends from Proto-Germanic "anþeraz", meaning "other" or "second", which goes back to a Proto-Indo-European root "h₂énteros" meaning "other". The two words are false cognates: the resemblance is coincidental, and the true cognate of "alter" is the Latin "anterior". The English form is shared with a large family of Germanic languages, where it appears as Old Norse "annarr", Gothic "anþar", Old High German "andar", and modern German "ander". Its sense of "the remaining one of two" is preserved in phrases like "one or the other", and its function as a pronoun and adjective reflects its use for contrasting one thing with another. In Old English the word was "ōþer", meaning "other" or "second", and it passed into Middle English as "other" in the same basic sense. The word's core meaning has remained stable, which is why it still marks the contrast between one thing and something different from it.

Synonyms: different, additional, alternative, distinct, further

Antonyms: same, identical, equal, like, similar