ker-

1. an unstressed syllable prefixed to onomatopoeic and other expressive words, usually forming adverbs or interjections:

   kerflop; kerplunk; ker-splosh.

Word History and Origins

Origin of ker-¹

Perhaps from Scots dialect car-, cur-, currie- (as in carfuffle, carwhuffle “to disarrange,” carnaptious “irritable,” curriebuction “a confused gathering, etc.”), based on car, earlier ker “left (hand or side),” from Scots Gaelic cearr “wrong, awkward, left-handed” (compare Middle Irish cerr “crooked, maimed”); variants without r probably reflect forms in r -less dialects

Example Sentences

KER also found that a venti iced caramel macchiato costs 8.4% more than it did two months ago, while a venti caffe latte costs about 5.5% more than it used to.

From Salon

Remaking Public Housing: With a focus on affordability, community, convenience and light, the architect Liu Thai Ker replaced Singapore’s squalid slums with spacious high-rises.

From New York Times

“Taiwan doesn’t have many natural resources,” Morris Ker, the chair of the newly created microelectronics department at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University told the students.

From Los Angeles Times

In his presentation, Ker gave another example of the industry’s indispensability.

From Los Angeles Times

When Taiwan’s worst earthquake in a quarter-century hit in April, factory workers were evacuated but quickly returned — a sign, Ker said, of the manufacturing hub’s resilience.

From Los Angeles Times