shears
Britishplural noun
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large scissors, as for cutting cloth, jointing poultry, etc
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a large scissor-like and usually hand-held cutting tool with flat blades, as for cutting hedges
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any of various analogous cutting or clipping implements or machines
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short for sheerlegs
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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.
Instead the final four candidates for the job were a range of eager submissives, each straining to appear enthusiastic to pick up the pruning shears and start cutting rates by the bunch:
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 2, 2026
"I get the sheep shears on it for a mullet," she said.
From BBC • Jul. 24, 2024
In the salvage yard Monday morning, workers disassembled the metal trusses by attacking them with propane torches and a pair of giant shears that sliced them into more manageable pieces.
From Seattle Times • Apr. 15, 2024
Derick Hembd, president of Sixco Nevada, said the governor’s proposal calls for using shears and saws to harvest individual trees, leaving saplings and sagebrush untouched.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 11, 2024
In the factory, where we had machines, shears, measuring sticks, and ample light, such a suit would’ve taken many hands a week.
From "Not Nothing" by Gayle Forman
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.
