per
[ pur; unstressed per ]
/ pɜr; unstressed pər /
preposition
for each; for every: Membership costs ten dollars per year. This cloth is two dollars per yard.
by means of; by; through: I am sending the recipe per messenger.
according to; in accordance with: I delivered the box per your instructions.
adverb
Informal.
each; for each one: The charge for window-washing was five dollars per.
Origin of per
1580–90; < Latin: through, by, for, for each. See
for
usage note for per
Per for
a or
an or
for each occurs chiefly in technical or statistical contexts:
miles per gallon; work-hours per week; feet per second; gallons of beer per person per year. It is also common in sports commentary:
He averaged 16 points per quarter.
Per is sometimes criticized in business writing in the sense “according to” and is rare in literary writing.
WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH per
per purr (see usage note at the current entry)Words nearby per
Definition for per (2 of 4)
per-
a prefix meaning “through,” “thoroughly,” “utterly,” “very”: pervert; pervade; perfect.
Chemistry.
a prefix used in the names of inorganic acids and their salts that possess the maximum amount of the element specified in the base word: percarbonic (H2C2O5), permanganic (HMnO4), persulfuric (H2S2O8), acids; potassium permanganate (KMnO4); potassium persulfate (K2S2O8).
Origin of per-
< Latin, combining form of
per
per, and used as an intensive
Definition for per (3 of 4)
Definition for per (4 of 4)
Example sentences from the Web for per
British Dictionary definitions for per (1 of 3)
per
/ (pɜː, unstressed pə) /
determiner
for every
three pence per pound
preposition
(esp in some Latin phrases) by; through
as per
according to
as per specifications
as per usual informal
as usual
Word Origin for per
C15: from Latin: by, for each
British Dictionary definitions for per (2 of 3)
PER
abbreviation for (in Britain)
Professional Employment Register
British Dictionary definitions for per (3 of 3)
per-
prefix
Word Origin for per-
from Latin
per through
Medical definitions for per
per-
pref.
Thoroughly; completely; intensely:perfuse.
Containing an element in its highest oxidation state:perchloric acid.
Containing a large or the largest possible proportion of an element:peroxide.
Containing the peroxy group:peracid.