# mere

> English word · Adjective · IPA /mɪə̯/ · frequency rank #5,812

## Definitions
1. Just, only; no more than, pure and simple, neither more nor better than might be expected.
2. Pure, unalloyed .
3. Nothing less than; complete, downright .

## Etymology
From Middle English mere, mer, from Anglo-Norman meer, from Old French mier, from Latin merus (“pure, unmixed, undiluted”), from Proto-Indo-European *mer- (“to sparkle, gleam”).
Cognate with Old English āmerian, āmyrian (“to purify, examine, revise”). The Middle English word was perhaps influenced by or conflated with sound-alike Middle English mere (“glorious, noble, splendid, fine, pure”), from Old English mǣre (“famous, great, excellent, sublime, splendid, pure, sterling”), from Proto-West Germanic *mārī, from Proto-Germanic *mērijaz.

## Easily confused with
- **Mr** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-mr)
- **met** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-met)
- **Mrs** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-mrs)
- **MRI** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-mri)
- **moe** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-moe)
- **mir** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-mir)
- **MOR** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-mor)
- **mes** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-mes)
- **mew** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-mew)
- **mex** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-mex)
- **Mme** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-mme)
- **MRT** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-mrt)
- **MRC** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-mrc)
- **MRP** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-mrp)
- **Mie** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-mie)
- **meu** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-meu)
- **more** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-more)
- **move** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-move)
- **mine** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-mine)
- **mike** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mere-vs-mike)

## Common misspellings (4)
`emre`, `merre`, `mmere`, `mree`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/mere