shirr

[ shur ]

/ ʃɜr /

verb (used with object)

to draw up or gather (cloth or the like) on three or more parallel threads.

to bake (eggs removed from the shell) in a shallow dish or in individual dishes.

noun

Also shirr·ing. a shirred arrangement, as of cloth.

Nearby words

Origin of shirr

First recorded in 1840–50; origin uncertain

Related formsun·shirred, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for shirr

Shirr′ing, decorative-shirred needlework; Shirr′ing-string, a cord used to gather the threads together in shirred-work.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements)|Various
Shirr, Shir, shėr, n. a puckering made in a fabric by parallel gathering-threads.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements)|Various

British Dictionary definitions for shirr

shirr

/ (ʃɜː) /

verb

to gather (fabric) into two or more parallel rows to decorate a dress, blouse, etc, often using elastic thread

(tr) to bake (eggs) out of their shells

noun Also: shirring

a series of gathered rows decorating a dress, blouse, etc

Word Origin for shirr

C19: of unknown origin

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

Word Origin and History for shirr

shirr

"to gather (cloth) on parallel threads," 1860 (implied in shirring), back-formation from shirred (1847), from shirr (n.) "elastic webbing," of unknown origin.