(anatomy) A thin membrane that separates the outer ear from the middle ear and transmits sound from the air to the malleus.

Wages, money earned, income. / (finance) Business profits. / (finance) Gains on investments; returns.

superlative form of early: most early

superlative form of early: most early

(idiomatic) Practical; realistic; pragmatic. / (idiomatic) Ordinary; normal; run-of-the-mill.

Whoever arrives first has the best chance of success; some opportunities are only available to the first competitors.

(transitive) To mark (sheep or other animals) by slitting the ear. / (transitive, by extension) To specify or set aside for a particular purpose, to allocate.

A mark or deformation of the ear of an animal, intended to indicate ownership. / (US, politics) The designation of specific projects in appropriations of funding for general programs.

simple past tense and past participle of earn

The rank of being an earl. / The territory controlled by an earl.