English Explanatory Dictionary

shear

English dictionary entry

Meanings

verb
  1. To remove the fleece from (a sheep, llama, etc.) by clipping.
  2. To cut the hair of (a person).
  3. To cut, originally with a sword or other bladed weapon, now usually with shears, or as if using shears.
  4. To deform because of forces pushing in opposite directions.
  5. To change in direction or speed.
  6. To transform by displacing every point in a direction parallel to some given line by a distance proportional to the point’s distance from the line.
  7. To make a vertical cut in coal.
  8. (also 'shear off') To break or suddenly separate because of excessive force, eg. a bolt.
  9. To reap, as grain.
  10. To deprive of property; to fleece.
noun
  1. A cutting tool similar to scissors, but often larger.
  2. A large machine use for cutting sheet metal.
  3. The act of shearing, or something removed by shearing.
  4. Forces that push in opposite directions.
  5. The phenomenon of wind shear.
  6. A specific instance of wind shear.
  7. A transformation that displaces every point in a direction parallel to some given line by a distance proportional to the point's distance from the line.
  8. The response of a rock to deformation usually by compressive stress, resulting in particular textures.
adj
  1. Misspelling of sheer.
name
  1. A surname.

Pronunciation

/ʃɪə(ɹ)/ /ʃɪɹ/ /ʃɛə/ en-us-sheer.ogg

Word forms

shear shears shearing sheared shore shorn

Etymology

From Middle English sheren, scheren, from Old English sċieran (“to shear; to shave”), from Proto-West Germanic *skeran, from Proto-Germanic *skeraną, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- (“to cut”). Cognate with West Frisian skarre, Low German scheren, Dutch scheren, German scheren, Danish skære, Norwegian Bokmål skjære, Norwegian Nynorsk skjera, Swedish skära, Finnish keritä; and (from Indo-European) with Ancient Greek κείρω (keírō, “to cut off”), Latin caro (“flesh”), Albanian shqerr (“to tear, cut”), harr (“to cut, to mow”), Lithuanian ski̇̀rti (“separate”), Welsh ysgar (“separate”). See also sharp.

Synonyms

fleece shears

Derived words

beshear hydroshear reshear shearability shearable shear off toshear alligator shear crocodile shear guillotine shear Kepler shear magnetoshear megashear microshear preshear shearbill shear-cake shear centre shearer shearfree shear hog shear legs shearless shearlet shearlike shear line shearline shearling shearman shear modulus shearography shearotactic shearotaxis shearpole shear steel shear strength shear stress sheartail shear-thickening shear-thinning shear viscosity shear wall shearwall shearwater shear wave shear zone Sherman squaring shear throatless shear wind shear windshear

Translations

Finnish: vinouttaa
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