# sear

> English word · Adjective · IPA /sɪɚ/ · frequency rank #41,374

## Definitions
1. Dry; withered, especially of vegetation.

## Etymology
From Middle English sere, seer, seere, from Old English sēar, sīere (“dry, sere, sear, withered, barren”), from Proto-West Germanic *sauʀ(ī), from Proto-Germanic *sauzaz (“dry”), from Proto-Indo-European *sh₂ews- (“dry, parched”) (also reconstructed as *h₂sews-).
Cognate with Dutch zoor (“dry, rough”), Low German soor (“dry”), German sohr (“parched, dried up”), dialectal Norwegian søyr (“the desiccation and death of a tree”), Lithuanian saũsas (“dry”), Ukrainian сухий (suxyj, “dry”), Polish suchy (“dry”), Homeric Ancient Greek αὖος (aûos, “dry”). Doublet of sere and sare.

## Easily confused with
- **see** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-see)
- **set** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-set)
- **sex** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-sex)
- **sir** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-sir)
- **sec** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-sec)
- **sen** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-sen)
- **SEO** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-seo)
- **spa** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-spa)
- **SEP** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-sep)
- **ser** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-ser)
- **sew** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-sew)
- **sha** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-sha)
- **STA** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-sta)
- **ses** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-ses)
- **STR** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-str)
- **sem** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-sem)
- **sia** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-sia)
- **SEQ** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-seq)
- **ska** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-ska)
- **Seb** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sear-vs-seb)

## Common misspellings (4)
`esar`, `saer`, `searr`, `ssear`

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