Dasher

6 4.8

One of Santa's reindeer that pulls his sleigh at Christmas

proper noun

Literature

: Dasher

Now, Dasher!
Dasher, Dancer
Dasher, Dancer, Prancer
Rudolph, Dasher

Examples

Oh, Dasher should be on my right-hand side.

Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
- Now Dasher, now Dancer!

The Santa Clause (1994)
Donald and Donna Dasher are going to join us...

Female Trouble (1974)
It's kinda like Dasher and Dancer and Vixen.

Logan Lucky (2017)
On, Dasher!

Santa Stole Our Dog: A Merry Doggone Christmas! (2017)
Hi, Dasher, hi, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen...

Saving Santa (2013)
Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, and Vixen.

The Night Before the Night Before Christmas (2010)
Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen...

Escape Room (2019)
Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen!

Jingle All the Way (1996)
In the popular Christmas song, children sing about Dasher and all the other reindeer.

Compounds

real dasher

7.5

A soccer player who runs very fast and gets past defenders

Surface Forms

Dasher main

Morphology

Dasher = dash (semi-transparent) = dash + er

Formed from the verb 'dash' plus the agentive suffix '-er' (meaning 'one who dashes'), but as a proper name for a reindeer the formation is conventional rather than a productive noun meaning for learners.

Etymology

Dasher comes from the verb dash ('to run quickly') plus the ending -er, so it literally means 'one who dashes'. A famous Christmas poem gave this name to one of Santa's reindeer, so Dasher is easy to remember as the fast reindeer who leads the sleigh.