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thirl

American  
[thurl] / θɜrl /

verb (used with object)

British Dialect.

  1. to pierce.

  2. to thrill.

thirl 1 British  
/ θɜːl /

verb

  1. dialect (tr)

    1. to bore or drill

    2. to thrill

"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
thirl 2 British  
/ θɜːl, θɪrl /

verb

  1. (tr) to enslave; bind

"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

Etymology

Origin of thirl

before 1000; Middle English thirlen, Old English thyrlian, derivative of thyrel hole. See nostril

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.