- present tense form of shear (3rd person singular).
shears
Britishplural noun
-
-
large scissors, as for cutting cloth, jointing poultry, etc
-
a large scissor-like and usually hand-held cutting tool with flat blades, as for cutting hedges
-
-
any of various analogous cutting or clipping implements or machines
-
short for sheerlegs
-
informal (of a sheep) newly shorn
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
I slipped on waterproof shoes, grabbed a pair of shears and, still in my pajamas, tiptoed down the grand staircase of the château and out onto the dewy grass of the garden.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 4, 2026
That means buying fresh lobsters from your local market, boiling them and using kitchen shears to slice their shells from head to tail.
From Salon ● Sep. 1, 2024
"I get the sheep shears on it for a mullet," she said.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2024
As our planet’s atmosphere warms, wind shears — variations in wind direction or speed — within jet streams are increasing and therefore strengthening clear-air turbulence.
From Seattle Times ● May 24, 2024
The old lady in the middle took out a huge pair of scissors—gold and silver, long-bladed, like shears.
From "The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
