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# shears

noun (shears — plural); verb form (shears — of shear: shear, shears, sheared, shearing/shorn)

«shears» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. Shears are a large cutting tool like big, strong scissors, used for cutting hedges, grass, metal or sheep's wool. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/shears/#m1)
2. «Shears» is also the verb: «the farmer shears the sheep» means he cuts off their wool. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/shears/#m2)

### In the lessons

In everyday life gardeners use shears to trim hedges; on farms in Australia and New Zealand, sheep are sheared for wool. In safety lessons, shears are sharp tools for adults only. Phrases: «garden shears», «a pair of shears», «hedge shears».

### Examples

- Dad trimmed the hedge with shears. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/shears/#x1)
- Shears are like giant scissors. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/shears/#x2)
- The farmer shears the sheep every spring. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/shears/#x3)
- Hand me the shears, please — carefully! [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/shears/#x4)
- A pair of shears is on the shed wall. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/shears/#x5)
- Sheep shearers in New Zealand can shear hundreds of sheep in a day. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/shears/#x6)

### Note

Always plural like «scissors»: «the shears are sharp», «a pair of shears». Past of shear: «sheared»; past participle «shorn» is also used («shorn sheep»). Homophone: «sheers» (very thin curtains). Don't confuse with «sheer» (steep or complete).

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «shears» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/shears/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«shears» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/shears.html) on Mova free.