/ʃɹuː/, /ʃɹɪu̯/
OriginFrom Middle English *schrewe, from Old English sċrēawa (“shrew”), from Proto-Germanic *skrawwaz (“thin; meagre; frail”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- (“to cut; shorten; skimp”). Cognates include Old High German scrawaz (“dwarf”), Norwegian skrugg (“dwarf”).
- Any of numerous small, mouselike, chiefly nocturnal, mammals of the family Soricidae.
- Certain other small mammals that resemble true shrews.
- obsolete, transitiveTo beshrew; to curse.
Formsshrews(plural) · shrow(alternative) · shrews(present, singular, third-person) · shrewing(participle, present) · shrewed(participle, past) · shrewed(past)