EPTSTR

(older form øfri), a. compar.,

1) upper, opp. to neðri;

bera efra skjöld, to gain the victory;

verða e-m efri, to be superior to;

hit efra,

a) high above ground (fara hit efra í trjám sem apynjur eða íkornar);

b) the upper or inland road, opp. to ‘hit ytra’, along the shore (sumir fóru hit efra til Þríhyrningshálsa);

by land, opp. to the sea;

c) of the inner part of a building, opposed to ‘hit fremra’ or the part nearest the door (konungr settist í hásæti ok alskipat var hit efra ok hit fremra);

2) latter;

þetta var inn efra hlut sumars, towards the end of summer;

á efra aldri, advanced in years.

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compar.; EFSTR, superl.; older form öfri, Hkv. 2. 36, Ó. H. ch. 248 (in a verse), Greg. 42, N. G. L. i. 10, 384, Íb. 5, Hom. 116; öfstr, Fms. x. 394, 686 C. 2, Ls. 50, 51, Hbl. 18, Edda 115, 116 (Gl.); compar. and superl. without the positive [as Lat. superior, supremus, Gr. ὑπέρτερος], but formed from the root syllable ‘of-,’ cp. ofar, yfir; very old MSS. therefore mostly spell with ö, a vowel change of o; the mod. form, as well as that of most MSS., is with e, efri, efstr, Am. 50, Og. 23:

I. the upper, higher; the phrase, bera efra skjöld, to carry the higher shield, i. e. carry the day, Fms. x. 394 (MS. æfra): opp. to neðri = upper, at Mosfelli enu öfra, Íb. 5: the adverb, phrase ‘it efra’ denoting the upper or inland road, opp. to the shore; allt hit efra suðr, Eg. 58; sumir fóru it efra til Þríhyrnings-hálsa, Nj. 207; hit efra um Upplönd, Fms. i. 22: by land, opp. to the sea, Hkr. ii. 8: of the inner part of a building, opp. to fremri or the part nearest the door, Eg. 43: in the air, opp. to the earth, Sks. 115: superl. efstr, the hindermost, e. liðr, the hindermost joint, 623. 32: neut. efst as adv. highest up, uppermost, efst á stólpanum, 655 xxv. 2.

β. metaph. superior, better; er öllum öfri er, Greg. 43.

II. the latter, last part:

1. temp., á efra aldri, in the decline of life, Eg. 4; inn öfri, the latter, opp. to fyrri, N. G. L. i. 342; efri hluti sumars, in the decline of summer, Eg. 712; Ólafs-messa hin öfri (= síðari), the latter (i. e. second) day of St. Olave (viz. Aug. 3), opp. to Ólafs-messa fyrri (July 29), N. G. L. i. 10; efsti dómr, the last judgment, Stj. 58; öfsti dómr, id., 686 l. c.; efsta vika, the last week of Lent = the Passion week, Orkn. 386, Mar. 78; öfsti dagr Paska, the last day in Easter, N. G. L. i. 348; efsta bæn, the last prayer, 623. 50; þeim gef ek erni efstum bráðir, Fas. i. 429 (in a verse); efsta sinni, for the last time, 227; þó vér ritim hana öfri en aðrar, Hom. 116.

2. loc., where aptari and aptastr or eptri and eptstr are the common words; fyrstr and efstr are opposed, foremost and last, in a rank, Ls. l. c.; sá fyrstr er efstr gekk inn, Grág. i. 32.

a. compar.

1) aftermost, hindmost, opp. to fremri eptri fótr the hind leg; hit eptra austrrúm, the hindmost pumping place;

2) later, latter, opp. to fyrri.

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compar., and EPTSTR or epztr, superl. (also sometimes aptari, aptastr), the aftermost, hinder, hindmost:

1. loc., eptra fæti, the hind leg, Edda 28; báða fætr hina eptri, Vígl. 21 (aptr-fætr, hind leg’s); til hins eptra austr-rúms, the hindmost, opp. to fremri, Fms. viii. 139; framstafninn ok hinn eptri (viz. stafn), ii. 304; eptra (aptara) hjalt (of a sword), Fas. iii. 244; at aptara stafni, 429; eigi vil ek vera aptastr allra minna manna, I will not be the hindmost of all my men, Fms. ii. 307; er raddar-staf hefir eptra í nafninu, Skálda 165.

2. temp. later, last; en eftri burðar-tíð en hin fyrri, Hom. 56; hina eftri hingatkomu Krists, 106; þá eru þeir skrökváttar er eftri báru, that last bore witness, N. G. L. i. 32; vide efri and aptr.