shrew

Significat (English)

Noun

1. Any of numerous small, mouselike, chiefly nocturnal, mammals of the family Soricidae (order Soricomorpha).
2. Certain other small mammals that resemble true shrews.
3. An ill-tempered, nagging woman: a scold.

Verb

To beshrew; to curse.

Synonyms

termagant

vixen

virago

shrewmouse

scold

Xanthippe

hag

busybody

harridan

mouse

🐭

mole

witch

stubborn tomboy

white-toothed shrew

old bag

drab

guinea pig

rat

🐀

shrew-mouse

spitfire

tiger

🐅

tigress

vole

wife

👰‍♀️

scolding woman

unmanageable person

Pronunciat com a (IPA)

/ʃɹuː/

Etimologia (English)

Inherited from anglès mitjà: *schrewe

Inherited from anglès antic: sċrēawa

In summary

From Middle English *schrewe, from Old English sċrēawa (“shrew”), from Proto-Germanic *skrawwaz (“thin; meagre; frail”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- (“to cut; shorten; skimp”). Cognates include Old High German scrawaz (“dwarf”), Norwegian skrugg (“dwarf”).