1
as in shaves
to make (something) shorter or smaller with the use of a cutting instrument
it took almost a week to shear all the wool off the flock of sheep
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in slits
to penetrate with a sharp edge (as a knife)
the shark's razor-sharp teeth sheared the swimmer's flesh right down to the bone
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shears
Verb
-
Perhaps this shaves off sharp edges around any conversation.—
Simon Hughes,
New York Times,
11 Mar. 2026 -
One of the highlights is the bread cart rolled out at the beginning of the meal, right after the waiter shaves off a roll of unctuous French butter from a huge golden mound.—
Penny E Schwartz,
Oc Register,
1 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Sadly, the Oscar orchestra cuts them off before another songwriter can speak.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
16 Mar. 2026
-
It is easily reached by a highway that cuts cleanly through the Sonoran Desert, past wind turbines spinning in their hundreds.—
Sophie Morgan,
Condé Nast Traveler,
15 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
For one, Pashtun nationalists will always have problems with a border that slices their heartland in two.—
Mihir Sharma,
Twin Cities,
8 Mar. 2026
-
The campaign reaching the ballot would add to a series of looming questions about the future of the map, which slices through Kansas City.—
Kacen Bayless,
Kansas City Star,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The holder clips right to your pack or waders and keeps everything in a neat, easy-to-dispense stack.—
Francesca Krempa,
Outside,
23 Dec. 2025
-
The carry handles each have a magnetic piece that then clips together to form a single bar to grasp.—
Adam Campbell-Schmitt,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Above this playful mess of a beat, which includes a music box-like instrument that sounds partially broken, Shabaka rips out brief and noisy phrases on tenor sax.—
Mark Richardson,
Pitchfork,
12 Mar. 2026
-
It’s generally accepted that John rips Carolyn’s engagement ring off her finger in the park, and returns it when sitting on the curb.—
Radhika Seth,
Vogue,
27 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Trusting the reader trims needless words.—
Jasna Hodžić,
Big Think,
10 Mar. 2026
-
As the United Nations inevitably trims its support for sustainable development, Asia is going to have to find a replacement source of capital.—
Naina Subberwal Batra,
Fortune,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Atlassian slashes 10% of workforce to ‘self-fund’ investments in AI and enterprise sales.—
Sharon Goldman,
Fortune,
12 Mar. 2026
-
Trump admin slashes branch that preserves historical federal buildings and art in Atlanta.—
Zachary Hansen,
AJC.com,
10 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Grandmother takes a small pair of scissors from her bag and snips a swatch from the green cloth, then slips it into her pocket.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
4 Mar. 2026
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Using scissors, Boesch, who trained at the Rhode Island School of Design, typically snips cards into pieces and reassembles them into depictions of such subjects as Lady Liberty, Yankee Stadium, Andy Warhol, Derek Jeter, and Pizza Rat.—
Taran Dugal,
New Yorker,
5 Jan. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Shears.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shears. Accessed 20 Mar. 2026.
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