sheer

1
[ sheer ]
See synonyms for: sheersheeredsheeringsheers on Thesaurus.com

adjective,sheer·er, sheer·est.
  1. transparently thin; diaphanous, as some fabrics: sheer silk.

  2. unmixed with anything else: We drilled a hundred feet through sheer rock.

  1. unqualified; utter: sheer nonsense.

  2. extending down or up very steeply; almost completely vertical: a sheer descent of rock.

  3. British Obsolete. bright; shining.

adverb
  1. clear; completely; clean: ran sheer into the thick of battle.

  2. perpendicularly; vertically; down or up very steeply.

noun
  1. a thin, diaphanous material, as chiffon or voile.

Origin of sheer

1
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English scere, shere, schere “free, clear, bright, thin”; probably from Old Norse skǣrr; change of sk- from s(c)h- perhaps by influence of the related Old English scīr (English dialect shire “clear, pure, thin”); cognate with German schier, Old Norse skīr, Gothic skeirs “clear”

Other words for sheer

Opposites for sheer

Other words from sheer

  • sheerly, adverb
  • sheerness, noun

Words that may be confused with sheer

Words Nearby sheer

Other definitions for sheer (2 of 2)

sheer2
[ sheer ]

verb (used without object)
  1. to deviate from a course, as a ship; swerve.

verb (used with object)
  1. to cause to sheer.

  2. Shipbuilding. to give sheer to (a hull).

noun
  1. a deviation or divergence, as of a ship from its course; swerve.

  2. Shipbuilding. the fore-and-aft upward curve of the hull of a vessel at the main deck or bulwarks.

  1. Nautical. the position in which a ship at anchor is placed to keep it clear of the anchor.

Origin of sheer

2
First recorded in 1620–30; of uncertain origin; perhaps a special use of sheer1

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use sheer in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for sheer (1 of 2)

sheer1

/ (ʃɪə) /


adjective
  1. perpendicular; very steep: a sheer cliff

  2. (of textiles) so fine as to be transparent

  1. (prenominal) absolute; unmitigated: sheer folly

  2. obsolete bright or shining

adverb
  1. steeply or perpendicularly

  2. completely or absolutely

noun
  1. any transparent fabric used for making garments

Origin of sheer

1
Old English scīr; related to Old Norse skīrr bright, Gothic skeirs clear, Middle High German schīr

Derived forms of sheer

  • sheerly, adverb
  • sheerness, noun

British Dictionary definitions for sheer (2 of 2)

sheer2

/ (ʃɪə) /


verb(foll by off or away ( from ))
  1. to deviate or cause to deviate from a course

  2. (intr) to avoid an unpleasant person, thing, topic, etc

noun
  1. the upward sweep of the deck or bulwarks of a vessel

  2. nautical the position of a vessel relative to its mooring

Origin of sheer

2
C17: perhaps variant of shear

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012