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shear ~ sheer

['shear' and 'sheer' have the same pronunciation that rhymes with “beer” or "clear"]

“Shear” (verb ~~~  shear – sheared – sheared/shorn – shearing) is ‘to cut the hair (wool/fleece) of sheep; to cut someone’s hair; to break away suddenly and violently; to take away someone’s important or very valuable thing; to be pulled or ripped off’,

{‘Shears’ (always in plural form) is ‘a pair of large scissors used to cut the hair of sheep or the branches and leaves of some kinds of garden plants to make them look neat and attractive; and “Shearer” is a person whose job is to cut the hair (wool/fleece) of sheep on a ranch’.}

e.g.

The rancher hired twenty shearers to shear his sheep.

Though shorn most of our customers by the other hotels, we still could do some good business with our loyal customers.   [i.e. though most of our customers were taken away by other hotels, we still could do…]

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“Sheer”, as an adjective, is ‘used before a noun to emphasise that someone or something is very heavy, large, powerful, etc.; (of a side of a hill, cliff, slope) very steep, almost vertical so that it is very difficult and dangerous to climb’, as an adverb, it is ‘(of a hill, cliff, slope) almost vertical – straight up/down’; as a verb, it is ‘to change the direction of something suddenly to avoid something else, like a speeding car changes direction suddenly to avoid hitting a stray dog/cow on a road’,

e.g.

The sheer weight of the load toppled the cart.

The tourists were awe-struck by the sheer size of the ancient pyramids in Egypt.

The captain of the ship sheered his ship away to avoid the cliffs that rose sheer from the sea.  (‘sheered’ – verb; ‘sheer’ – adverb)

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