noun
shrew
shroo
noun
1
A small, mouse-like, mostly nocturnal mammal with a pointed snout.
"A shrew darted through the leaf litter, hunting insects."
2
An ill-tempered, nagging woman (old-fashioned, now considered sexist).
"The old play mocked its heroine as a shrew who needed "taming.""
How to Use Shrew
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA small pointy-nosed mammal, or, in old-fashioned usage, a nagging woman.
When to use it
The "nagging woman" sense is dated and widely seen as sexist; it survives mainly in older literature such as The Taming of the Shrew.
Word Forms
shrewed past tense, shrews plural, shrews singular
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A _____ darted through the leaf litter, hunting insects.
Etymology
From Old English screawa ("shrew"), ultimately from a root meaning "thin" or "small."