# or

Pronunciation: US say "OR" /oɹ/; UK say "AW" /ɔː(ɹ)/

## Conjunction

1. Used to link two or more alternative words, phrases, or clauses, any one of which would make the statement true.
   - Simple: Used to join two or more choices, when any one of them could be true.
   - _You can pay by card or in cash at the front desk._
   - _The delay could be caused by snow, a staff shortage, or a broken signal._
2. Used to join two names that refer to the same thing.
   - Simple: Used between two names that mean the same thing.
   - _We flew into Mumbai, or Bombay, as my grandfather still calls it._
   - _The herb is sold as cilantro, or coriander, depending on where you shop._
3. Used to introduce a correction of what has just been said, or a more accurate way of putting it.
   - Simple: Used to fix or say more exactly something you have just said.
   - _The report was written by the CEO, or at least that's whose name is on it._
   - _She's my cousin, or my second cousin, to be exact._
4. Used to introduce the consequence if the preceding statement is not true or is not acted on.
   - Simple: Used to say what will happen if the first part does not happen or is not true.
   - _Book your tickets this week, or they'll be gone._
   - _He must have left already, or his car would still be in the driveway._
7. In logic and computing, the operator or keyword that gives true when at least one of its inputs is true.
   - Simple: In logic and computers, an operation that gives 'true' if at least one of two things is true.
   - _If either premise holds, then p or q holds as well._
   - _In Python, the condition x > 0 or y > 0 passes when either number is positive._

## Noun · OR

5. Short for operating room: a room in a hospital equipped for performing surgery. — Initialism of operating room. (pronounced: US say "oh-AHR" /ˌoʊˈɑɹ/; UK say "oh-AH" /ˌəʊˈɑː/)
   - Simple: Short for operating room: the hospital room where doctors do surgery.
   - _The surgeon was called back to the OR just after midnight._
   - _She spent eight years as an OR nurse before moving into hospital administration._
8. A logic gate that carries out an inclusive or, giving a true output when at least one input is true.
   - Simple: A part in a circuit that turns on its output when at least one input is on.
   - _The alarm feeds both door sensors into an OR gate, so opening either door sets it off._
   - _On the schematic, the output of the OR drives a small warning light._
9. Short for Olympic Record: the best performance ever achieved in an event at the Olympic Games. — Initialism of Olympic Record. (pronounced: US say "oh-AHR" /ˌoʊˈɑɹ/; UK say "oh-AH" /ˌəʊˈɑː/)
   - Simple: Short for Olympic Record: the best result ever in an event at the Olympic Games.
   - _The Kenyan runner broke the OR by nearly two seconds but missed the world record._
   - _Two swimmers went under the old OR in the same heat._
13. Short for official receipt: a receipt a business issues as proof of payment, often asked for when claiming reimbursement. *(Philippines)* — Initialism of official receipt. (pronounced: US say "oh-AHR" /ˌoʊˈɑɹ/; UK say "oh-AH" /ˌəʊˈɑː/)
   - Simple: Short for official receipt: a receipt a business gives you as proof that you paid.
   - _The clinic issued an OR for the 800-peso consultation fee._
   - _Accounting won't reimburse your taxi fare without an OR._

## Proper noun · OR

Pronunciation: US say "oh-AHR" /ˌoʊˈɑɹ/; UK say "oh-AH" /ˌəʊˈɑː/

6. Short for Oregon: a state in the northwestern United States, used especially in mailing addresses. — Abbreviation of Oregon: a state of the United States.
   - Simple: Short for Oregon: a US state, written this way in mailing addresses.
   - _Mail your application to 400 Commercial Street, Salem, OR 97301._
   - _Our order shipped from a warehouse in Portland, OR, and arrived two days later._

## Adjective

10. Of the gold or yellow tincture, used to describe part of a coat of arms.
   - Simple: Gold or yellow, when talking about the colors on a coat of arms.
   - _The family's arms show a blue field crossed by a bend or._
   - _The herald described the crown as or, the stars as argent, and the field as azure._

## Noun

11. In heraldry, the gold or yellow tincture used on a coat of arms.
   - Simple: The gold or yellow color used on a coat of arms.
   - _In heraldry, or is one of the two metals, and painters often show it as plain yellow._
   - _In black-and-white engravings, or is shown by a pattern of fine dots, while argent is left plain._

## Preposition

12. Used to mean before in time, usually followed by ever or e'er. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: Used to mean before. It is usually followed by the word ever.

## Adverb

14. At an earlier time or stage; early on or previously. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: At an earlier time, or before something else.

## Other meanings

- (noun) Short for operations research: the use of mathematical methods such as modeling and optimization to help organizations plan and make better decisions.
- (noun) Short for other ranks: in the British and Commonwealth armed forces, the members who are not commissioned officers, or one such member.
- (noun) Short for original research: on Wikipedia, facts, analysis or conclusions that no reliable published source supports, which editors may not add.
- (noun) Short for odorant receptor: a receptor protein on a smell-sensing nerve cell that detects particular odor molecules and signals the brain.
- (proper noun) Short for Orissa: the former name of Odisha, a state in eastern India.

## Origin

**Meanings 1–4, 7** — Middle English or has two sources. Part of it is a shortened form of other, auther, which go back to Old English āþor, āwþer ("some, any, either"). The rest comes from oththe, a Middle English word descended from Old English oþþe, and that goes back to Proto-Germanic *efþau ("or").
**Meanings 10–11** — Latin aurum ("gold") became Old French or, which developed into Middle French or ("yellow"). English borrowed this as or ("gold") in late Middle English.
**Meanings 12, 14** — From late Old English ār, from Old Norse ár; compare ere.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/or (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).