heller

See also: Heller

English

Etymology 1

Borrowed from German Heller. Doublet of halier.

Noun

heller (plural hellers)

1. (historical) A German coin equivalent to half a pfennig, later used widely as a small coin in Central Europe and the German Empire.
2. A subdivision of the Czech, Slovakian and Czechoslovakian koruna. 100 hellers make up one koruna.

Translations

13th-century coin equivalent to half a pfennig

• French: heller (fr) m, haller m
• German: Heller (de) m
• Polish: halerz (pl) m
• Russian: ге́ллер (ru) m (géller)

Subdivision of Czech koruna

• Czech: haléř (cs) m
• German: Heller (de) m
• Polish: halerz (pl) m
• Russian: ге́ллер (ru) m (géller)
• Slovak: halier m

Etymology 2

1890–95, Americanism; short for hell-raiser.

Noun

heller (plural hellers)

1. (US, Cornwall) A noisy, rowdy, troublesome person; a hellion.

Anagrams

• here'll

Danish

Etymology 1

See hellere.

Adverb

heller

1. Obsolete spelling of hellere.
   • 1843, Ludvig baron Holberg, Den danske Skueplads eller Ludwig Holbergs: samtlige Comodier i eet Bind, page 124:

     Nei jeg vil heller være misundt, end foragtet.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

   • 1907, Knut Hamsun, Samlede romaner og fortællinger: Folkeudgave:

     Jeg vil heller — heller skære lidt Tænder uden Øl.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Etymology 2

Old Norse heldr

Adverb

heller

1. (negated) either

   Jeg har heller ikke noget bord.

   I do not have a table, either.

   Der er heller ingen læger her.

   There are no doctors here, either.

German

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈhɛlɐ/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛlɐ

Adjective

heller

1. inflection of hell:
   1. strong/mixed nominative masculine singular
   2. strong genitive/dative feminine singular
   3. strong genitive plural
2. comparative degree of hell
3. inflection of helle:
   1. strong/mixed nominative masculine singular
   2. strong genitive/dative feminine singular
   3. strong genitive plural
4. comparative degree of helle

Luxembourgish

Adjective

heller

1. feminine dative of hell

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology 1

From Old Norse heldr.

Adverb

heller

1. rather

   heller ... enn - rather ... than

2. heller ikke - not ... either, neither

Etymology 2

Noun

heller m or f

1. indefinite plural of helle

Etymology 3

Verb

heller

1. present of helle

References

• “heller” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology 1

From Old Norse heldr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈhɛlːɛr/

Adverb

heller

1. comparative degree of gjerne

heller

1. rather

   heller ... enn - rather ... than

2. heller ikkje - not ... either, neither

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /²hɛlːɛr/

Noun

heller f

1. indefinite plural of helle

References

• “heller” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Swedish

Etymology

Inherited from Old Swedish hælder, from Old Norse heldr.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

• Homophone: häller

Adverb

heller (not comparable)

1. (in negative expressions) either

   Jag kan inte knäppa med fingrarna, och det kan inte Lisa heller

   I can't snap my fingers, and neither can Lisa ("and that can not Lisa either")

   Jag klarade inte av att lyfta den tyngsta stenen, men det gjorde ingen av medtävlarna heller

   I didn't manage to lift the heaviest stone, but none of my co-competitors did either

   Nisse hade inte heller sett hunden, så jag frågade Berit, men inte heller hon hade sett den!

   Nisse hadn't seen the dog either, so I asked Berit, but she hadn't seen it either! ("but not either / neither she had seen it" – adds a bit more emphasis compared to "men hon hade inte sett den heller")

   Britt var inte på festen, och inte heller Bernt var där

   Britt wasn't at the party, and Bernt wasn't there either

   Hon var inte den starkaste, och inte heller den snabbaste

   She was not the strongest, neither the fastest

   Man ska inte överdriva problemen, men heller inte underskatta dom

   You shouldn't exaggerate the problems, but neither should you underestimate them

2. (colloquial) Emphasizes a negative expression.

   Klart han inte lånar ut pengar till en känd bedragare. Han är väl inte dum heller.

   Of course he's not gonna lend money to a known swindler. I mean, he's not stupid.

   – Wow! Vilket snyggt skott! – Jo, man är väl ingen amatör heller!

   – Wow! What a nice shot! – Yeah, you're not dealing with no amateur, you know! (similar in tone – bit jocular- and cheeky-sounding)

Usage notes

Both "inte heller" and "heller inte" can be used when "heller" and "inte" occur next to each other. "Heller inte" often sounds a bit more formal.

Derived terms

• i helvete heller
• så fan heller

References

• heller in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• heller in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• heller in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

Anagrams

• hellre