sheer

sheer
sheer c.1200, "exempt, free from guilt," later schiere "thin, sparse" (c.1400), from O.E. scir "bright, clear," influenced by O.N. cognate scær "bright, clean, pure," from P.Gmc. *skairijaz (Cf. O.S. skiri, O.Fris. skire, Ger. schier, Goth. skeirs "clean, pure"), perhaps from PIE root *skai- "to shine" (see SHINE (Cf. shine)). Sense of "absolute, utter" (sheer nonsense) developed 1580s; that of "very steep" (sheer cliff) is first recorded 1800.

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • Sheer — Sheer, n. 1. (Naut.) (a) The longitudinal upward curvature of the deck, gunwale, and lines of a vessel, as when viewed from the side. (b) The position of a vessel riding at single anchor and swinging clear of it. [1913 Webster] 2. A turn or… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Sheer — Sheer, a. [OE. shere, skere, pure, bright, Icel. sk?rr; akin to sk[=i]rr, AS. sc[=i]r, OS. sk[=i]ri, MHG. sch[=i]r, G. schier, Dan. sk?r, Sw. sk[ a]r, Goth. skeirs clear, and E. shine. [root]157. See {Shine}, v. i.] 1. Bright; clear; pure;… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Sheer — may refer to: *Sheer Music, a record label *Sheer curation, a lightweight approach to digital curation *Sheer (textile), for sheer textiles and fabrics *Sheer is a measure of longitudinal deck curvature in naval architecture.ee also*Shear *Shere… …   Wikipedia

  • Sheer — Sheer, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Sheered}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Sheering}.] [D. sheren to shear, cut, withdraw, warp. See {Shear}.] To decline or deviate from the line of the proper course; to turn aside; to swerve; as, a ship sheers from her course; a… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • sheer — sheer; sheer·ly; sheer·ness; tab·a·sheer; …   English syllables

  • sheer — sheer1 [shir] vi. [var. of SHEAR, prob. infl. by Du or LowG scheren, to cut, deviate, warp away] to turn aside sharply from a course; swerve vt. to cause to sheer n. 1. a sudden change of course; abrupt turn; swerve 2. the oblique heading or… …   English World dictionary

  • Sheer — ist der Familienname folgender Personen: Gordy Sheer (* 1971), US amerikanischer Rennrodler Ireen Sheer (* 1949), deutsch britische Schlagersängerin Siehe auch: Scheer Diese Seite ist eine Begriffsk …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • sheer — [adj1] abrupt, steep arduous, erect, headlong, perpendicular, precipitate, precipitous, sideling, upright; concepts 490,581 Ant. moderate, slow sheer [adj2] utter, absolute altogether, arrant, blasted, blessed, complete, confounded, downright,… …   New thesaurus

  • sheer — Ⅰ. sheer [1] ► ADJECTIVE 1) nothing but; absolute: sheer hard work. 2) (of a cliff, wall, etc.) perpendicular or nearly so. 3) (of a fabric) very thin. ► ADVERB ▪ perpendicularly. DERIVATIVES …   English terms dictionary

  • Sheer — Sheer, adv. Clean; quite; at once. [Obs.] Milton. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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