▪ I. shred, n.
(ʃrɛd)
Forms: 1 scréade, pl. scréada, -an, 3 schreade, shrade, 3–6 shrede, 4–5 schrede, 6 shredd, shradde, 6–7 shredde, 7, 9 shreed, 7–9 shread, (9 shrid), 6– shred.
[OE. *scréad str. fem. (pl. scréada), scréade wk. fem. = OFris. sc(h)rêd hair-cutting, clipping of coin, MLG. schrôt, schrât neut., cut, cut-off piece, width of linen, also schrôde, schrâde wk. masc. (LG. schraad), MDu. schrôde fem. (WFlem. schroode, schroo fem., Du. schroot neut., from G.), OHG. scrôt str. masc. (MHG. schrôt; G. schrot neut., in dial. masc.), f. OTeut. *skrauđ- (:skreuđ-, skrū̆đ-, to cut, for other derivatives of which see shroud, shride v.1). Cf. screed n.
The OTeut. *skreuđ- is commonly viewed as an extended form of *skreu-, which is itself an extension of *sker-: see shear v.]
1. A fragment cut or broken off; a strip; a scrap.
In late use apprehended as transf. from sense 3.
| c 1000 ælfric Gloss. in Wr. Wülcker 151/20 Praesegmina, praecisiones, screadan. Ibid. 164/6 Sceda, screade. a 1225 Ancr. R. 416 Ȝif heo mei sparien eni poure schreaden [MS. C schraden, T schiue], sende ham al derneliche ut of hire woanes. c 1300 Havelok 99 Hauede he non so god brede, Ne on his bord non so god shrede. Þat he ne wolde þorwit fede Poure. c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 1540 Þe white [dragon] brent þan rede, Þat of him nas founden a schrede, Bot dust. c 1400 Laud Troy Bk. 4455 Thei hadde ben hewen euery a schrede. 1564–78 W. Bullein Dial. agst. Pest. (1888) 102 There is a fletyng Island... Sume saied it was a shred of the bankes of Paradise. a 1701 Maundrell Journ. Jerus. (1732) 106 A small shred of ground twelve yards long, and one broad. 1860 Thackeray Lovel iii, He munched a shred of toast. 1860 Pusey Min. Proph. 65 One of those little shreds which float in countless numbers on the surface of the water. 1863 Kinglake Crimea (1876) I. x. 140 It would be well to set apart one small shred of ground. |
b. = sherd. rare.
| 1613–6 W. Browne Brit. Past. ii. i. (1625) 17 Carrying my pot as Maids vse on their heads, I fell with it, and broke it all to shreads. 1865 Kingsley Herew. xxx, He..sorted his pots, kept the whole ones, threw the shreds at the rabbits. |
2. In OE., pl. Parings (of fruit, etc.); in mod. use, a narrow strip (of peel, vegetable, root, etc.) shaved so thin that it curls.
| c 1000 ælfric Gloss. in Wr.-Wülcker 118/1 Quisquiliæ, æppelscreada, uel cornæsceda. 1741 Compl. Fam.-Piece i. ii. 119 Put shreds of Lemon-peel into some of the Glasses. 1840 Thackeray Shabby-genteel Story iii, Three shreds of celery in a glass. 1842 Loudon Suburban Hort. 307 The part of the stock which projects over the ring of the bark is next split into shreds. 1846 J. Baxter Libr. Pract. Agric. I. 469 The root [horse-radish] scraped into shreds is the well-known accompaniment of ‘the roast beef of Old England’. |
† b. pl. Parings of leather or parchment. Obs.
| 1551–2 Act 5 & 6 Edw. VI, c. 15 §3 Everie Girdler..maye..sell their Neckes Wombes and Shreddes of tanned Leather, to anye person. 1553 Inv. Ch. Goods (1885) 19 Pd. for a bag of glover's shreds xij d. 1687 Lond. Gaz. No. 2240/2 Glovers Clippings, Parchment Shreds. |
3. A fragment or strip of textile material cut or torn off; one or more fibres torn from a piece of cloth; a small piece of cloth, a fragment of clothing; pl. scanty or ragged garments.
| ? a 1400 Morte Arth. 3473 Manye schredys and schragges at his skyrttes hynnges. c 1400 26 Pol. Poems 2 God wole haue rekenyng,..Of men and cloth the leste shrede. c 1430 Syr Gener. (Roxb.) 6118 Generides than cut his shirt..And with the shredes hem he bond. c 1450 Pol. Rel. & L. Poems 137 Nakede with outen clath or schrede. 1589 Nashe Martin's Months minde 45 The shreddes that fall into the Tailors hell, neuer come backe to couer your backe. 1615 G. Sandys Trav. 56 Some of them going almost starke naked: others clothed in shreds of severall colours. 1661 Boyle Style Script. (1675) 72 A fair suit of Arras, of which..a shread may assure you of the fineness of the colours, and richness of the stuff. 1735 Berkeley Querist §505 The very shreds shorn from woollen cloth. 1848 Thackeray Van. Fair xvii, They have hung a shred of carpet out of an upstairs window. 1850 A. Jameson Leg. Monast. Ord. 324 Her clothes became ragged, and she mended them with shreds of any colour. 1881 A. O'Shaughnessy Christ will Return, Songs of Worker 23 Clothed withal In shreds, the greatest beggar, yea in all The world. |
b. pl. Strips of cloth used for nailing up plants or fruit trees.
| 1796 C. Marshall Gardening xii. (1798) 136 The proper use of nails and shreds is necessary to the beauty of the tree. 1840 Dickens Old C. Shop xli, The old gentleman handed up the nails and shreds of cloth as he wanted them. 1842 Loudon Suburban Hort. 353 Shreds will last two or three years. |
c. of shreds (and patches): made up of rags or scraps. Hence used allusively.
| 1602 Shakes. Ham. iii. iv. 102 A King of shreds and patches [1st Qo. A king of clowts, of very shreads]. 1649 G. Daniel Trinarch., Rich. II, xxxiii, Led by a Rascall, made of shreds. 1827 Carlyle Misc., Richter (1869) 4 That this thing of shreds and patches has been vamped together for sale only. 1885 W. S. Gilbert Mikado i, A wand'ring minstrel I, a thing of shreds and patches. |
† d. A cant term for a tailor. Obs.
| 1599 B. Jonson Cynthia's Rev. v. iv. Wks. (1616) 246 You slaue, you lift, you shreds. 1632 Massinger & Field Fatal Dowry iii. i, That poore shred Can bring more to the making vp of a man. a 1700 B. E. Dict. Cant. Crew, Shred, a Tailer. |
e. transf. (of cloud, mist, etc.).
| 1834 M. Scott Cruise Midge xxiii, These fibres, or shreds of clouds. 1877 Black Green Past. xxxiv, The windy shreds of cloud. 1912 Engl. Rev. Nov. 514 Some shreds [of mist] are caught among the topmost trees. |
f. (See quot. 1898.)
| 1846 G. E. Day tr. Simon's Anim. Chem. II. 2 Membranous shreds are sometimes observed [in the saliva]. 1897 Allbutt's Syst. Med. III. 923 Loose motions containing much mucus or ‘shreds’ or ‘casts’, or even blood. 1898 Syd. Soc. Lex., Shreds, patches of filmy material passed with the fæcal discharges in some cases of enteritis and diarrhœa. |
4. A length or end of gold or silver thread or lace. arch.
| a 1450 Le Morte Arth. 2359 Launcelot and the quene were cledde In Robes of A Riche wede, Off Samyte white, with syluer shredde. 1583 Stubbes Anat. Abus. ii. 39 Neuer so litle scraps or shreds or short ends of lace. 1765 Goldsm. Double Transform. 36 Half the charms that decked her face Arose from powder, shreds, or lace. 1845 James Arrah Neil ii, His doublet..displayed a great number of ornamented buttons, and shreds of gold lace. |
5. Phr. in, into shreds: in or into small fragments. to tear to shreds (also, shred by shred): to rend into small pieces; fig. to destroy, annihilate.
| c 1400 Melayne 1093 Hawberkes sone in schredis were schorne. 1762 Falconer Shipwr. ii. 28 ‘Brail up the mizen quick!’ the Master cries: ‘Mann the clue-garnetts, let the main-sheet fly!’ In thousand shiv'ring shreds it rends on high! 1813 Scott Rokeby vi. xvii, ‘Give Oswald's letter’—Bertram read. And tore it fiercely, shred by shred. 1819 Keats Why did I laugh to-night? 12 Yet would I..the world's gaudy ensigns see in shreds. 1837 Carlyle Fr. Rev. I. vi. iii, A Townhall torn to shreds. 1855 Browning Fra Lippo 61 Into shreds it went, Curtain and counterpane and coverlet. 1878 Lecky Eng. in 18th C. I. i. 25 Lewis tore to shreds the treaty he had signed. 1903 S. G. Tallentyre Voltaire xxxix. II. 217 It tore Vernet's reputation to shreds. |
6. A fragment, small piece, little bit, scrap (of something immaterial).
| c 1400 Brut cxcvii, Allas! Holonde me haþ bitraiede! Ay is in þe rede [? = red-haired man] of somme euel shrede. a 1529 Skelton Sp. Parrot 94 Suche shredis of sentence, strowed in the shop Of auncyent Aristippus. 1593 G. Harvey Pierce's Super. Wks. (Grosart) II. 115 The dregges of common scurrilitie, the shreds of the theater. 1607 Shakes. Cor. i. i. 212 They said they were an hungry, sigh'd forth Prouerbes..: With these shreds They vented their Complainings. 1642 Milton Apol. Smect. 18 This was a shred in his common place-book. 1645 G. Daniel Poems Wks. (Grosart) II. 39 A despis'd Shred of mankind. 1742 R. Blair Grave 225 As if a slave was not a shred of nature. 1768 Tucker Lt. Nat. (1834) I. 504 It is a shred torn off from the substance. 1834 H. Miller Scenes & Leg. viii. (1857) 105 Shreds of heretic sermons would be whispered over their ale. 1868 Nettleship Ess. Browning iv. 113, I must preserve a shred of independence in my inner self. 1885 Times (weekly ed.) 9 Oct. 2/2 Not a shred or shadow of truth. |
† 7. A twig. (Cf. shred v. 2.) Obs.
| 15.. Guye of Gisborne i. in Furniv. Percy Folio II. 227 When shales beeene [sic] sheene, and shradds full fayre, and leeues both Large and longe. 1599 T. M[oufet] Silkwormes 72 To view vppon one birchen shredde Some hundred Clewes to hang like clustred peares. |
▪ II. shred, v.
(ʃrɛd)
Forms: 1 scréadian, 3 scradien, Ormin shrædenn, 3–5 schrede, 4–5 schredde, 4–6 shrede, 5 schred, 6 shreade, shrid, 6–8 shread, 6– shred. pa. tense 4 s(c)hredde, schradde, 4–5 shradde, 5 schrede, 6 shrede, 9 shredded. pa. pple. 1 ᵹescréadod, 4 schrede, schradde, 5 yshrad, yschredyd, schrad, 5–6 shredd(e, 6–8 shreaded, shread, 6– shredded, 4– shred.
[OE. scréadian wk. vb. = OFris. *skrêda (whence skrêdere clipper of coin). The other WGer. langs. have a redupl. str. vb. (later partly conjugated weak) of the same meaning: MLG. schrôden, schrâden, MDu. schrôden (mod.Du. schrooien, schroeien, W.Flem. schrooden), OHG. scrôtan (MHG. schrôten, G. schroten); f. OTeut. *skrauđ-: see shred n.]
† 1. a. trans. To rid (a tree, vine, vineyard) of superfluous growth; to prune. Obs.
| c 1000 ælfric Hom. (Th.) II. 74 Ᵹif se winᵹeard..ne bið onriht ᵹescreadod. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. ix. xxx. (Bodl. MS.), In lente vynes and oþer treen beþ ikutte & pared, and ischred of superfluitees. c 1440 Jacob's Well 26 Alle paryschenys þat..schredyn, or croppyn, ony treen in cherche-ȝerde. 1523–34 Fitzherb. Husb. 42 b, If y⊇ haue any trees to shrede loppe or croppe for the fyre wode. Ibid. 43 It is the comun vse to begynne at the toppe of y⊇ tree whan he shall be shred or cropped. 1570 Golding Justin xliii. 175 They lerned to shred their vynes. 1620 J. Wilkinson Courts Leet 119 Trees and hedges which hang over the kings high waies must be cut and shredded. 1707 Mortimer Husb. (1721) II. 73 As for Timber-Trees, it is best not to head them at all, but to shred them up to one single Bough. 1762 in Jrnls. Ho. Comm. 13 Feb. 1792, 254/1 The Shreddings of all such Trees [that]..have heretofore been used to be lopped, cut, or shred. |
| absol. 1571 Jewel On 1 Thess. (1611) 72 To plant, to weed, to graffe, to shrid. |
b. fig. To strip (a person) of his wealth or some possession; to fleece. (Cf. shredded b.) Obs.
| 1548 Patten Exped. Scot. F ij, A good fellowe,..that hath cum to a dycyng boord..and hath soon bene shred of al that euer he brought. 1579 Hake Newes out of Powles ii. (1872) B vij, To shred him cleane from all his wealth. 1643 Trapp Comm. Gen. xviii. 19 He that hid his talent, was soon shred of it. |
2. † a. To lop off (branches), esp. in pruning. In first quot. fig. Obs.
| c 1000 ælfric Hom. (Th.) II. 74 Buton ða lareowas screadian symle ða leahtras þurh heora lare aweᵹ, ne bið þæt læwede folc wæstmbære. 1390 Gower Conf. I. 138 Hew doun this tree..And let of schreden every braunche. 1540 Elyot Image Gov. (1556) 127 Yf the boughes be rotten or seare, the owner will shredde theim. 1568 Withals Dict. (1644) 124 The superfluous and wast sprigs of Vines, beeing cut and shreaded off. 1633 Bp. Hall Occas. Medit. §116 If thou shouldest deale with me as I deserue, thou shouldst not only shred my boughs, but cut downe my stocke. 1662 Comenius' Janua Ling. Triling. 76 He loppeth (shreddeth) off the suckers. 1707 Mortimer Husb. (1721) II. 32 Though they will grow amongst other Wood provided you shred up the side Boughs. 1725 Bradley's Fam. Dict. s.v. Walnut-Tree, You must by no means, in the Removal of them cut the Head, only shred up the side Branches. |
† b. To cut or strip off; to cut (a piece) from or out of. Obs.
| 1580 T. M. Baret's Alv. To Rdr. A vj/2 And there with floures he stuffeth first his Hiue, From which he Honie from the best hath shred. 1583 B. Melbancke Philotimus F j b, Too much drought doth shred the leaues. 1591–5 L. Bryskett Thestylis 75 in Spenser Astrophel, Purple flowre, Which languisheth being shred by culter as it past. 1614 Gorges Lucan ii. 52 One pares his eares from off his head, Another doth his nostrels shred. Ibid. iii. 111 This maister with his brasse-beake head, Out of a Roman ship had shred A mighty planke. 1649 G. Daniel Trinarch., Hen. IV, v, Th' vnguided Rage Of an Insultinge Conquerour, who shreds Maiesty like the mounting Poppie-Heads. 1823 Scott Quentin D. ii, Traps, armed with scythe-blades, which shred off the unwary passenger's limb. |
| fig. 1581 Mulcaster Positions xxxvii. (1887) 148 The retained [religion] must pitch the defence of her truth, in some paucity of choice: seeing the liuinges are shred, which should serue the great number. 1596 Nashe Saffron Walden S 2 b, I know what you are about to saye, but Ile shred you off three leaues at one blowe. |
c. To cut off (a lock of hair).
| 1808 Scott Marm. iii. xvii, They durst not, for their island, shred One golden ringlet from her head. 1856–9 Novels & Tales fr. Household Wds. (Tauchn.) I. 339 (Flügel) Where [a haircutter] had once shred their locks. |
† 3. a. To pare, peel. Obs.
| c 1000 ælfric Hom. (Th.) I. 88 Þa het he him his seax aræcan to screadiᵹenne ænne æppel. c 1200 Ormin 8118 He badd himm brinngenn ænne cnif An appell forr to shrædenn. 1639 O. Wood Alph. Bk. Secrets 197 Then shred off the inner bark of a white Bullas tree. |
b. transf. To cut away a part of, cut down, shave away. Obs.
| c 1205 Lay. 5866 Kerueð eowre spere longe, & makiet heom scorte..scradieð eower sceldes al of þe smal enden. |
4. a. To cut into shreds or small thin strips or slices; esp. in Cookery, so that the shreds curl.
| c 1386 Chaucer Clerk's T. 227 Wortes or othere herbes..The whiche she shredde and seeth. 1388 Wyclif 2 Kings iv. 39 He gaderide therof gourdis of the feeld..and schredde in to the pot of potage. c 1440 Pallad. on Husb. viii. 139 A pound and vncis sixe yshrad be do. 1584 Cogan Haven Health l. (1636) 64 Take unset Leekes..shread them small and distill them. 1648 Gage West Ind. vi. 19 Had they beene but that night with the Indians, doubtlesse they had beene shred for their Suppers. 1656 Marnetté Perf. Cook 115 Grate or shred fat Bacon or lard with a grater or knife. a 1756 E. Haywood New Present (1771) 197 Shred very fine a pound of suet. 1836 Marryat Japhet x, We were employed by Fleta in shredding vegetables. 1884 F. Boyle Borderland 371, I shredded some Spanish moss, bound up his wounds,..and set out for home. 1908 Motor Boat 5 Mar. 133/2 To shred up some best yellow soap and dissolve it in water. |
b. To cut or tear (textile stuff) into shreds or narrow strips; to reduce to shreds; also, to tear (paper, etc.) into shreds; spec. to reduce (documents) to unreadable strips or fragments by means of a shredder (cf. shredding vbl. n. 4).
| 1613 J. May Decl. Estate Clothing v. 24 The vse of short thrums is likewise so ordered, that they take and shred into short length, and then lay it in steepe. 1810 in Risdon Surv. Devon p. xxiii, The..Serges are shredded or cut up into small pieces. 1890 Hosie Three Yrs. W. China 19 There is an entire absence of machinery for washing and shredding rags. 1906 Conan Doyle Sir Nigel v, With his own hands he had shredded those august documents. 1950 Paper-Maker Aug. 151 (Advt.), The ‘Watford’ Shredder and Duster..gives most excellent results in shredding and dusting waste papers. 1974 Bernstein & Woodward All President's Men xiii. 267 People became afraid that the newspapers might be discovered, so someone said, ‘Shred them.’ 1980 Daily Tel. 3 Nov. 1/4 One of his jobs was to check and shred hundreds of bundles of secret and confidential papers. |
† 5. To cut or hack in pieces; to cut down. Obs.
| c 1275 Sinners Beware 328 in O.E. Misc. 83 Þe feondes heom forþ ledeþ Boþe lychom and saule And beteþ heom and schredeþ. ? a 1400 Morte Arth. 2688 Thoffe my schouldire be schrede. a 1440 Sir Degrev. 293 Schyre scheldus they schrede. a 1450 Le Morte Arth. 2563 Than shall we oute vppon them Ryde And shredde them downe as shepe in folde. a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. V, 59 b, The capitaines of Roan..cut doune trees, shrede the bushes, destroyed the vines. 1627 Drayton Agincourt 30 Another wafts his Blade about his head, And shewes them how their hamstrings he will shread. 1633 B. Jonson Tale of Tub iv. iii, This sword shall shred thee as small unto the grave, As minced meat for a pye. |
6. a. To divide into small portions.
| 1660 T. Lye in J. Nichols Morn. Exerc. (1845) V. 285, I shall not stand to shred the words into any unneccessary parts. 1674 N. Fairfax Bulk & Selv. 145 Indivisibles, such as can't be shread. 1859 Dickens T. Two Cities i. v, Hunger was shred into atomies in every farthing porringer of husky chips of potato. |
b. intr. To be reduced to shreds; to become divided or scattered into small portions.
| 1646 J. Hall Poems i. 21 May these Roses here To palenesse shred, And Lilies stand disguised in new Red. 1889 ‘Mark Twain’ Yankee at Crt. K. Arthur xliii, At last it [smoke] began to shred away lazily. 1891 Conan Doyle White Company x, The forest began to shred out into scattered belts of trees. |
7. a. trans. To cut in two, sever, as with scissors: chiefly with reference to severing the thread of life. Now rare.
| 1565 J. Phillip Patient Grissell 1887 Possesse thou myne while death deuide, & shred my File in twain. 1575 Gascoigne Posies, Dan Barth. Wks. 1907 I. 118 O sheare that shreadst the seemerent sheete of shame. 1596 Spenser F.Q. iv. ii. 52 When ye shred with fatall knife His line. 1614 Gorges Lucan i. 4 When..Atrops knife Shall shred in twaine thy time of life. |
b. To divide into two parts, cleave.
| 1765 Museum Rust. III. lxxxix. 371 [The shepherd] must shred or open the wool. 1881 Daily Tel. 28 Jan., To see the beautiful hull shredding the water. |
Add: [4.] c. fig. To defeat overwhelmingly, to trounce. slang (orig. U.S.).
| 1966 N.Y. Times (Internat. ed.) 22 Apr. 12/5 The Celtics shredded the Los Angeles Lakers..with a third-quarter explosion and scored a 120–106 victory. 1980 Newsweek 17 Nov. 7/1 His counter-revolution shredded the old Democratic victory coalition. 1987 Speedway Star 26 Sept. 16/3 Despite losing Mel Taylor in a Heat 4 accident at West Row, Fen Tigers shredded Eagles. |
d. Surfing. To cut or plough rapidly through (the water, etc.) on a surfboard; also transf., to travel along (a track, etc.) at speed. Also intr.
| 1977 G. F. R. Filosa Surfer's Almanac 194 Shred, to rip, to perform alaia style in superb fashion. 1985 Surfer Sept. 86/3, I love the way they..just shred everything in sight—carving, slashing aerials and snapbacks. Ibid. 104/3 When the surf is flat Zamba can be found in a number of places. She might be shredding up a trail on her dirtbike. 1987 Dirt Wheels Mag. Aug. 31/1 A Warrior showed up during practice but didn't sign up after seeing the Dirt Wheels Mojave shred the track! 1988 P. & S. Hill Skate Hard 75/1 Chances are if you want to shred vertical you need a ramp. |
▪ III. shred, ppl. a.
(ʃrɛd)
[pa. pple. of prec.]
1. = next.
| 1665 Hooke Microgr. 147 The stinging of shred Hors⁓hair. 1764 E. Moxon Eng. Housew. (ed. 9) 173 Put to 'em a little shred lemon-peel. 1806 A. Hunter Culina (ed. 3) 85 As much..shred onion, as will lie upon a quarter guinea. 1897 M. Kingsley W. Africa 470 Shred-up palm-leaves. |
† 2. Pruned. Obs.
| c 1648–50 R. Brathwait Barnabees Jrnl. iv. (1818) 155 Sweet briers, shred vines, privet bushes. |