shire
shire Lexical Profile
shire Game Scores & Validity
• noun
British A county or administrative district in Great Britain and certain other English-speaking countries, typically rural in character.
"The picturesque villages and rolling hills of the English shires attract thousands of tourists each summer."
A breed of large, heavy, and powerful draft horse, originally bred in the English Midlands, characterized by its immense strength and heavily feathered lower legs.
"The farmer hitched a pair of majestic shires to the wagon to pull the heavy load of timber through the muddy field."
Word Nuance & Usage
When used as a standalone word, 'shire' rhymes with 'fire'; however, when acting as a suffix in British county names (like Yorkshire or Hampshire), it is typically pronounced 'sheer' or 'shuh'.
• Rhymes for shire
Word Origin & Etymology
From Old English 'scīr', meaning 'office, province, or district', of Germanic origin. It historically denoted an estate or administrative area governed by an ealdorman or sheriff.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.