ware1

[wair] /wɛər/
noun
1.
Usually, wares.
  1. articles of merchandise or manufacture; goods:
    a peddler selling his wares.
  2. any intangible items, as services or products of artistic or intellectual creativity, that are salable:
    an actor advertising his wares.
2.
a specified kind or class of merchandise or of manufactured article (usually used in combination): silverware;
glassware.
See also -ware.
3.
pottery, or a particular kind of pottery:
delft ware.
4.
Archaeology. a group of ceramic types classified according to paste and texture, surface modification, as burnish or glaze, and decorative motifs rather than shape and color.
Origin
before 1000; Middle English; Old English waru; cognate with German Ware

ware2

[wair] /wɛər/
adjective
1.
watchful, wary, or cautious.
2.
aware; conscious.
verb (used with object), wared, waring.
3.
to beware of (usually used in the imperative).
Origin
before 900; Middle English (adj. and v.); Old English wær (adj.); cognate with German gewahr aware, Old Norse varr

ware3

[wair] /wɛər/
verb (used with object), wared, waring. Scot. and North England
1.
to spend; expend.
Origin
1300-50; Middle English < Old Norse verja to spend, invest

ware4

[wair] /wɛər/
noun, Scot. and North England
1.
the first season in the year; spring.
Origin
1250-1300; Middle English < Old Norse vār spring; perhaps akin to Latin vēr (see vernal), Greek éar spring

-ware

1.
a combining form extracted from software, occurring as the final element in words that refer to a specified kind or class of software: spyware;
shareware.
See also ware1 (def 2).
Examples from the web for ware
  • Earthenware, also called semi-vitreous or white ware, is produced from less coarse clay.
  • Every shard of every ware has a value.
  • For the first time in world ceramic practice, goods can be fired by heat applied from all sides of the ware.
  • Putting free courseware online was a first step in reimagining education.
  • If a joke kills—that is, gets a big laugh—I have a new comedy ware to display.
  • Every pattern is color-locked right into the ware.
  • We do need iron, but that can be obtained from other sources, such as using iron cooking ware.
  • But more importantly, and on topic, he's seen sporting a fashionable piece of mouth ware at the time: a smoking pipe.
  • Place in granite-ware pan and bake until thoroughly heated.
  • Fruit should be cooked in earthen or granite ware utensils, and silver or wooden spoons should be employed for stirring.
British Dictionary definitions for ware

ware1

/wɛə/
noun (often in combination)
1.
(functioning as sing) articles of the same kind or material: glassware, silverware
2.
porcelain or pottery of a specified type: agateware, jasper ware
See also wares
Word Origin
Old English waru; related to Old Frisian were, Old Norse vara, Middle Dutch Ware

ware2

/wɛə/
verb
1.
another word for beware
adjective
2.
another word for wary, wise1
Word Origin
Old English wær; related to Old Saxon, Old High German giwar, Old Norse varr, Gothic war, Latin vereor. See aware, beware

ware3

/wɛə/
verb
1.
(transitive) (Northern English & Brit, dialect) to spend or squander
Word Origin
C15: of Scandinavian origin; related to Icelandic verja
Word Origin and History for ware
n.

"manufactured goods, goods for sale," Old English waru, probably originally "object of care, that which is kept in custody," from Proto-Germanic *waro (cf. Swedish vara, Danish vare, Old Frisian were, Middle Dutch were, Dutch waar, Middle High German, German ware "goods"); related to Old English wær "aware, cautious" (see wary). Usually wares, except in compounds such as hardware, earthenware, etc. Lady ware was a jocular 17c. euphemism for "a woman's private parts," and Middle English had ape-ware "deceptive or false ware; tricks" (mid-13c.).

v.

"to take heed of, beware," Old English warian "to guard against," from Proto-Germanic *warojan, from *waro- "to guard, watch" (cf. Old Frisian waria, Old Norse vara); related to Old English wær "aware" (see wary).

ware in Science
-ware  
A suffix that means "software," as in shareware.