Etymology 1
From a shortening of dandruff.
Noun
dander (usually uncountable, plural danders)
- Dandruff—scaly white dead skin flakes from the human scalp.
- Hair follicles and dead skin shed from mammals.
- Allergen particles that accumulate on and may be shed from the skin and fur of domestic animals, especially from household pets such as cats and dogs.
Translations
dead skin shed by animals
Etymology 2
Uncertain.
Noun
dander (plural danders)
- (chiefly Scotland) A cinder; (in the plural) the refuse of a furnace
- (slang) Passion, temper, anger. Usually preceded by "have" or "get" and followed by "up".
He'll get his dander up if his team is criticized.
She has her dander up every day about discrimination against women.
Etymology 3
Alteration of dandle or daddle
Verb
dander (third-person singular simple present danders, present participle dandering, simple past and past participle dandered)
- To wander about.
1922 February, James Joyce, “[[Episode 16]]”, in Ulysses, Paris: Shakespeare and Company, […], →OCLC:So as neither of them were particularly pressed for time, as it happened, and the temperature refreshing since it cleared up after the recent visitation of Jupiter Pluvius, they dandered along past by where the empty vehicle was waiting without a fare or a jarvey
1938, Norman Lindsay, Age of Consent, 1st Australian edition, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, published 1962, →OCLC, page 195:"I'll have no more of it. I'll have no more Dinny Ryans handlin' flesh and blood of my gettin'. Ye'd see me dyin' for a sup of drink to give me peace, and you philanderin' and danderin' with yon scut of a fellow, and worse doin's behind that, if the truth is told."
- To maunder, to talk incoherently.
Further reading
- “dander”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- “dander”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
- “dander”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.