peter
verb
pe·ter
| \ ˈpē-tər
\
\
petered;
petering;
peters
Definition of peter
(Entry 1 of 4)
1
: to diminish gradually and come to an end : give out
—usually used with out novelists whose creative impetus seems largely to have petered out — The Times Literary Supplement (London)
2
: to become exhausted
—usually used with out
peter
noun (1)Definition of peter (Entry 2 of 4)
often vulgar
: penis
Peter
noun (2)
Pe·ter
| \ ˈpē-tər
\
\
Definition of Peter (Entry 3 of 4)
1
: a fisherman of Galilee and one of the twelve apostles
2
: either of two hortatory letters written to early Christians and included as books of the New Testament — see Bible Table
Peter
biographical name
Pe·ter
| \ ˈpē-tər
\
\
Definition of Peter (Entry 4 of 4)
circa 1050–1115 the Hermit French preacher of the 1st Crusade
Examples of peter in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
The reforms have the potential to re-ignite the yellow vest movement, which petered out during the summer after months of protests against Macron’s economic reform program. — Washington Post, "France’s Macron to launch controversial pension overhaul," 5 Sep. 2019 Last year, the flu season set a record as the longest-running in a decade petering out around April and led to record-breaking hospitalizations. — Sonja Haller, USA TODAY, "Kids should get a 2019 flu shot before Halloween. But parents are skeptical it works," 5 Sep. 2019 The dynasty could peter out even if a healthy Durant returns. — Michael Shapiro, SI.com, "Five Big Questions Surrounding Kevin Durant's NBA Free Agency," 24 June 2019 Most likely, Wall Street strategists say, stocks would keepon rising after news of the quarter-point reduction, but once the one-and-donestrategy is revealed, the rally would become muted or may even peter out. — Larry Light, Fortune, "Here Are the Fed’s Four Options for a Rate Cut—and How the Market Will React to Each," 29 July 2019 Some investors and Tesla critics had suggested that consumer appetite for the electric vehicles was petering out. — Chris Isidore, CNN, "Tesla sets a record for sales, and its stock jumps 7%," 2 July 2019 That had sparked concerns that consumer appetite for its electric vehicles was petering out. — Julia Horowitz, CNN, "Tesla's record; Lagarde's new job; Broadcom eyes Symantec," 3 July 2019 As often as not, their sentences peter out into silence. — Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, "This D.C. exhibition should be seen by everyone concerned about the migrant crisis," 13 July 2019 Events that had been scheduled for Saturday petered out after Democrats canceled that meeting. — oregonlive.com, "Oregon Republican senators walkout: What you need to know today," 23 June 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'peter.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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