Definition

Adjective: 1. Cut or trimmed to a uniform length: Describes something, especially fur, wool, or fabric, that has been cut or finished to have a consistent, even length. 2. Having hair or wool removed by cutting: Describes something or someone from which the hair or wool has been cut off, typically using shears or clippers.

Examples

• Adjective:
  • The dog's sheared coat felt smooth and even to the touch.
  • The fabric was made from sheared beaver fur.
  • After the hot summer, the sheared sheep looked much smaller.
  • He looked different with his newly sheared head.

Advanced Usage

• "Sheared" vs. "Shorn": Both are past participles of the verb "shear." "Sheared" is more commonly used as an adjective in the context of materials (e.g., sheared wool). "Shorn" is often used as an adjective for living things or in more figurative/literary contexts (e.g., a shorn sheep, shorn of its power).
  • The sheared velvet was luxurious.
  • The sheep were shorn in the spring.
• Technical/Engineering Context: In physics and engineering, "sheared" describes an object deformed by a sliding force (shear stress). This is a distinct meaning from the cutting-related definition.
  • The metal bolt sheared under extreme pressure.

Variants and Related Words

• Shear (verb): To cut the wool, hair, or fleece from; to cut or trim with shears or a similar instrument.
  • They shear the sheep once a year.
• Shears (noun, plural): A cutting tool like large scissors.
  • He used garden shears to trim the hedge.
• Shorn (adjective): Past participle of "shear," often used synonymously with "sheared," especially for living things.
  • The shorn lamb bleated in the pen.

Synonyms

• Clipped: Cut short or trimmed with clippers.
• Trimmed: Made neat by cutting away irregular parts.
• Cropped: Cut very short.
• Cut: Separated or shaped with a sharp tool.

Antonyms

• Unshorn: Not having been sheared.
• Fleecy: Covered with or resembling long, wooly hair.
• Shaggy: Having long, thick, and untidy hair or fiber.

Adjective

1. (used especially of fur or wool) shaped or finished by cutting or trimming to a uniform length
   • a coat of sheared lamb
2. having the hair or wool cut or clipped off as if with shears or clippers
   • picked up the baby's shorn curls from the floor
   • naked as a sheared sheep