European
UK /(ˌ)jʊə.ɹəˈpiː.ən/ · US /ˌjʊɹ.əˈpi.ən/ adjective, noun
Forms Europeans Europaean Europæan
- adjective Related to Europe.
- adjective Related to the European Union.
- adjective Of white ethnicity. “Stamps like this were common on furniture made in Australia in the first half of last century, when there were a number of Chinese furniture makers in Australia who were seen as competition to 'European Australian' makers.”
- adjective (finance, of an option, not comparable) That can be exercised only at the expiry date.
- noun A person living or originating from Europe.
- noun A person who resides within the European Union.
Etymology
Borrowed from French européen, itself from New Latin Eurōpaeānus, from the secondary stem Eurōpae- extracted from the Classical Latin adjective Eurōpaeus [from Ancient Greek Εὐρωπαῖος (Eurōpaîos, “European”), from Εὐρώπᾱ (Eurṓpā, “Europe”) + -ῐος (-ĭos, suffix forming adjectives)] + -ānus (“-an”).
By surface analysis, Europ(e) + -ean.
Webster’s 1913
- adjective Of or pertaining to Europe, or to its inhabitants. On the European plain, having rooms to let, and leaving it optional with guests whether they will take meals in the house; --said of hotels.
- noun A native or an inhabitant of Europe.
Etymology [L. europeaus, Gr. europa.)]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “European”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details