some

[suhm; unstressed suh m] /sʌm; unstressed səm/
adjective
1.
being an undetermined or unspecified one:
Some person may object.
2.
(used with plural nouns) certain:
Some days I stay home.
3.
of a certain unspecified number, amount, degree, etc.:
to some extent.
4.
unspecified but considerable in number, amount, degree, etc.:
We talked for some time. He was here some weeks.
5.
Informal. of impressive or remarkable quality, consequence, extent, etc.:
That was some storm.
pronoun
6.
certain persons, individuals, instances, etc., not specified:
Some think he is dead.
7.
an unspecified number, amount, etc., as distinguished from the rest or in addition:
He paid a thousand dollars and then some.
adverb
8.
(used with numerals and with words expressing degree, extent, etc.) approximately; about:
Some 300 were present.
9.
Informal. to some degree or extent; somewhat:
I like baseball some. She is feeling some better today.
10.
Informal. to a great degree or extent; considerably:
That's going some.
Origin
before 900; Middle English (adj. and pronoun); Old English sum orig., someone; cognate with Middle Low German, Middle High German sum, Old Norse sumr, Gothic sums
Can be confused
some, sum (see usage note at the current entry)
Usage note
As pronouns, both some and any may be used in affirmative or negative questions: Will you (won't you) have some? Do you (don't you) have any? But some is used in affirmative statements and answers: You may have some. Yes, I'd like some. And in negative statements and answers, any is the usual choice: I don't care for any. No, I can't take any.

-some1

1.
a native English suffix formerly used in the formation of adjectives:
quarrelsome; burdensome.
Origin
Middle English; Old English -sum; akin to Gothic -sama, German -sam; see same

-some2

1.
a collective suffix used with numerals:
twosome; threesome.
Origin
Middle English -sum, Old English sum; special use of some (pronoun)

-some3

1.
a combining form meaning “body,” used in the formation of compound words:
chromosome.
Also, -soma.
Origin
< Greek sôma body; see soma1
Examples from the web for some
  • After the financial crisis, some small and midsize managers are flourishing.
  • But he does feel obligated to consider the arguments against his ideas and to respond at some point.
  • some governments are pushing to be more than mere stakeholders and instead to have the final say in important matters.
  • We've been hearing for some time about the loss of flora and fauna in our rain forests.
  • some poor people respect others who have earned their wealth.
  • Scientists have come to some surprising conclusions about the world and our place in it.
  • some peas are for shelling, some have edible pods, and others can be eaten either way.
  • Scientists don't know why some moments seem to last longer than others.
  • Both seem to have been spurred to action by a sense that corruption or financial excess had crossed some redlines.
  • some airborne particles pose more dangers than others.
British Dictionary definitions for some

some

/sʌm; unstressed səm/
determiner
1.
  1. (a) certain unknown or unspecified: some lunatic drove into my car, some people never learn
  2. (as pronoun; functioning as sing or plural): some can teach and others can't
2.
  1. an unknown or unspecified quantity or amount of: there's some rice on the table, he owns some horses
  2. (as pronoun; functioning as sing or plural): we'll buy some
3.
  1. a considerable number or amount of: he lived some years afterwards
  2. a little: show him some respect
4.
(usually stressed) (informal) an impressive or remarkable: that was some game!
5.
a certain amount (more) (in the phrases some more and (informal) and then some)
6.
about; approximately: he owes me some thirty pounds
adverb
7.
(US, not standard) to a certain degree or extent: I guess I like him some
Word Origin
Old English sum; related to Old Norse sumr, Gothic sums, Old High German sum some, Sanskrit samá any, Greek hamē somehow

-some1

suffix
1.
characterized by; tending to: awesome, tiresome
Word Origin
Old English -sum; related to Gothic -sama, German -sam

-some2

suffix
1.
indicating a group of a specified number of members: threesome
Word Origin
Old English sum, special use of some (determiner)

-some3

/-səʊm/
combining form
1.
a body: chromosome
Word Origin
from Greek sōma body
Word Origin and History for some
adj.

Old English sum "some, a, a certain one, something, a certain quantity; a certain number;" with numerals "out of" (e.g. sum feowra "one of four"); from Proto-Germanic *suma- (cf. Old Saxon, Old Frisian, Old High German sum, Old Norse sumr, Gothic sums), from PIE *smm-o-, suffixed form of root *sem- (1) "one," also "as one" (adv.), "together with" (see same). For substitution of -o- for -u-, see come.

The word has had greater currency in English than in the other Teutonic languages, in some of which it is now restricted to dialect use, or represented only by derivatives or compounds .... [OED]
As a pronoun from c.1100; as an adverb from late 13c. Meaning "remarkable" is attested from 1808, American English colloquial. A possessive form is attested from 1560s, but always was rare. Many combination forms (somewhat, sometime, somewhere) were in Middle English but often written as two words till 17-19c. Somewhen is rare and since 19c. used almost exclusively in combination with the more common compounds; somewho "someone" is attested from late 14c. but did not endure. Scott (1816) has somegate "somewhere, in some way, somehow," and somekins "some kind of a" is recorded from c.1200. Get some "have sexual intercourse" is attested 1899 in a quote attributed to Abe Lincoln from c.1840.

-some

word-forming element used in making adjectives from nouns or adjectives (and sometimes verbs) and meaning "tending to; causing; to a considerable degree," from Old English -sum, identical with som (see some). Cf. Old Frisian -sum, German -sam, Old Norse -samr; also related to same.

suffix added to numerals meaning "a group of (that number)," e.g. twosome, from pronoun use of Old English sum "some" (see some). Originally a separate word used with the genitive plural (e.g. sixa sum "six-some"); the inflection disappeared in Middle English and the pronoun was absorbed. Use of some with a number meaning "approximately" also was in Old English.

word-forming element meaning "the body," Modern Latin, from Greek soma "the body" (see somato-).

some in Medicine

-some suff.

  1. Body: centrosome.

  2. Chromosome: autosome.

Slang definitions & phrases for some

some

adjective

Very good; very effective; real • Often used ironically: In three weeks England will have her neck wrung like a chicken. Some neck! Some chicken! (1808+)


Idioms and Phrases with some

some

see: