nether
/nɛð.ɚ/adjective, adverb, verb, noun
nether is spelled N-E-T-H-E-R: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 32,798th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, nether means “Lower; under” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in nether?
| Letters | 6: N-E-T-H-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 32,798th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is nether?
Nether appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 32,798th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce nether?
- UK /nɛð.ə/
- US /nɛð.ɚ/
- Australia /neð.ə/
Nether has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-nether.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of nether
- nethermore comparative, rare
- nethermost superlative
- more nether comparative
- most nether superlative
- nethers present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- nethering participle, present
- nethered participle, past
- nither
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does nether mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Lower; under.
The disappointed child’s nether lip quivered.
- 2
Lying beneath, or conceived as lying beneath, the Earth’s surface.
the nether regions
adverb
- 1
Down; downward.
- 2
Low; low down.
verb
- 1
ScotlandUKTo bring or thrust down; bring or make low; lower; abase; humble.
- 2
ScotlandUKTo constrict; straiten; confine; restrict; suppress; lay low; keep under; press in upon; vex; harass; oppress.
- 3
ScotlandUKTo pinch or stunt with cold or hunger; check in growth; shrivel; straiten.
- 4
ScotlandUKTo shrink or huddle, as with cold; be shivery; tremble.
- 5
ScotlandUKTo depreciate; disparage; undervalue.
noun
- 1
ScotlandUKOppression; stress; a withering or stunting influence.
- 2
A trouble; a fault or dislocation in a seam of coal.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Nether in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | inférieur , souterrain |
| German | nieder , unterirdisch |
| Portuguese | inferior , subterrâneo |
| Spanish | inferior, de abajo , subterráneo |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does nether come from?
From Middle English nether, nethere, nithere, from Old English niþera (“lower, under, lowest”, adjective), from niþer, niþor (“below, beneath, down, downwards, lower, in an inferior position”, adverb), from Proto-West Germanic *niþer, from Proto-Germanic *niþer, *niþra (“down”), from Proto-Indo-European *ni-, *nei- (“in, down”). Cognates include Dutch neder, German nieder, Luxembourgish nidder, Danish, Norwegian and Swedish ned (“down”), Danish, Norwegian and Swedish nedre (“lower”), Faroese and Icelandic niður.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).