shear

Meaning

Verb

1. (intransitive, transitive) 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. (intransitive) 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. (intransitive) To make a vertical cut in coal.
8. (also 'shear off') To break or suddenly separate because of excessive force, eg. a bolt.
9. (Scotland) To reap, as grain.
10. (figuratively) To deprive of property; to fleece.

Noun

1. (countable, uncountable) A cutting tool similar to scissors, but often larger.
2. (countable, uncountable) A large machine use for cutting sheet metal.
3. (countable, uncountable) The act of shearing, or something removed by shearing.
4. (countable, uncountable) Forces that push in opposite directions.
5. (uncountable) The phenomenon of wind shear.
6. (countable) A specific instance of wind shear.
7. (countable, uncountable) 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. (countable, uncountable) The response of a rock to deformation usually by compressive stress, resulting in particular textures.

Adj

Misspelling of sheer.

Synonyms

cut

clip

mow

shave

trim

fleece

reap

sever

crop

shearing

snip

scissor

cut away

sythe

prune

chop

carve

shorten

cleave

slice

haircut

💇

harvest

hash

#️⃣

hew

incision

intersection

jab

jump cut

lop

nip off

pare

peel

pierce

pinch

plane section

poll

reduce

rend

resect

retrench

saw

🪚

scythe

section

skin

slicer

slit

spay

stab

strip

tear

Translations

tondre

tosare

scheren

scheren

esquilar

knippen

snoeien

trasquilar

tosquiar

cortar

tagliare

abschneiden

couper

schneiden

tosar

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ʃɪə(ɹ)/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: sheren

Inherited from Old English: sċieran

Cognate with Western Frisian: skarre

Cognate with Low German: scheren

Cognate with Dutch: scheren

Cognate with German: scheren

Cognate with Danish: skære

Cognate with Norwegian Bokmål: skjære

Cognate with Norwegian Nynorsk: skjera

Cognate with Swedish: skära

Cognate with Finnish: keritä

In summary

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, “I cut off”), Latin caro (“flesh”), Albanian shqerr (“to tear, cut”), harr (“to cut, to mow”), Lithuanian ski̇̀rti (“separate”), Welsh ysgar (“separate”). See also sharp.