shire

¹

[ shahyuhr ]

noun

1. one of the counties of Great Britain.
2. the Shires, the counties in the Midlands in which hunting is especially popular.

Shire

²

[ shahyuhr ]

noun

1. one of an English breed of large, strong draft horses having a usually brown or bay coat with white markings.

Shiré

³

[ shee-rey ]

noun

1. a river in SE Africa, flowing S from Lake Malawi to the Zambezi River. 370 miles (596 km) long.

Shire

¹

/ ˈʃɪəreɪ /

noun

1. a river in E central Africa, flowing from Lake Malawi through Malawi and Mozambique to the Zambezi. Length: 596 km (370 miles)

shire

²

/ ʃaɪə /

noun

1. 1. one of the British counties
   2. ( in combination )

      Yorkshire

2. (in Australia) a rural district having its own local council
3. See shire horse
4. the Midland counties of England, esp Northamptonshire and Leicestershire, famous for hunting, etc

shire

³

/ ʃaɪə /

verb

1. dialect.
   tr to refresh or rest

   let me get my head shired

Other Words From

• subshire noun
• under·shire noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of shire¹

before 900; Middle English; Old English scīr office of administration, jurisdiction of such an office, county

Origin of shire²

1875–80; apparently so called because it was bred in the shires, i.e., those counties of west and central England whose names end in -shire

Word History and Origins

Origin of shire¹

Old English scīr office; related to Old High German scīra business

Origin of shire²

from Old English scīr clear

Example Sentences

The CCN represents England's 20 county councils and 17 unitary authorities in shire areas.

From BBC

Rep. Eric Gallager, a Democrat from Concord, also wants to include an official pronunciation of “New Hampshire” in state law to make it clear that “shire” rhymes with “fur” not “fire.”

From Seattle Times

A pair of orphaned racehorse foals have been adopted by a shire horse in Devon.

From BBC

“I lived in a shire,” said Kobabe, whose father and mother carved beads, weaved and sewed in a rustic community not far from this Northern California town.

From Los Angeles Times

Buckingham Palace said the teddies had been collected with the help of shire horses and almost 200 volunteers - and were being "well looked after".

From BBC

Related Words

• country
• district
• field
• land
• locality
• neighborhood
• part
• place
• province
• sector
• suburb
• territory
• world
• zone