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scissors

noun
/ˈsɪzəz/UK/ˈsɪzɚz/US

Etymology

From Middle English sisours (attested since 1350–1400), from Old French cisoirs, from Late Latin cīsōria, plural of cīsōrium (“cutting tool”); from Latin word root -cīsus (compare excise) or caesus, past participle of caedō (“to cut”). Partially displaced native Old English sċēara (“scissors, shears”), whence shears. Doublet of chisel. The current spelling, from the 16th century, is due to association with Medieval Latin scissor (“tailor”), from Latin carrying the meaning “carver, cutter”, from scindō (“to split”).

  1. derived from scissor
  2. derived from cīsōria
  3. derived from cisoirs
  4. inherited from sisours

Definitions

  1. A tool used for cutting thin material, consisting of two crossing blades attached at a…

    A tool used for cutting thin material, consisting of two crossing blades attached at a pivot point in such a way that the blades slide across each other when the handles are closed.

    • Near-synonym: shears
    • Those scissors are sharp.
    • That scissors is sharp.

  2. A type of defensive maneuver in dogfighting, involving repeatedly turning one's aircraft…

    A type of defensive maneuver in dogfighting, involving repeatedly turning one's aircraft towards that of the attacker in order to force them to overshoot.

  3. An instance of the above dogfighting maneuver.

  4. ›+ 9 more definitions

    1. An attacking move conducted by two players

      An attacking move conducted by two players; the player without the ball runs from one side of the ball carrier, behind the ball carrier, and receives a pass from the ball carrier on the other side.

      • They executed a perfect scissors.

    2. A method of skating with one foot significantly in front of the other.

    3. An exercise in which the legs are switched back and forth, suggesting the motion of…

      An exercise in which the legs are switched back and forth, suggesting the motion of scissors.

    4. A scissors hold.

    5. A hand with the index and middle fingers open (a handshape resembling scissors), that…

      A hand with the index and middle fingers open (a handshape resembling scissors), that beats paper and loses to rock. It beats lizard and loses to Spock in rock-paper-scissors-lizard-Spock.

    6. plural of scissor

    7. Rare form of scissor (“to cut using, or as if using, scissors”).

      • She found her in the dining-room with Ann Foster, the little dressmaker, who was endeavouring to scissors through the right side of her underlip with her teeth as proof that the compiling of a list of requisites was no tax to her.

    8. third-person singular simple present indicative of scissor

    9. Cry of anguish or frustration.

      • Say, wouldn’t it put your eye out to get a letter from one of the kiddies with the thumb‐prints of that crest not doing a thing but snuggling down in the wax on the envelope? Oh, scissors!
      • “Scissors!” he shouted and stuck his finger in his mouth.
      • Then sit down—make yourself at home. Ah, scissors.

The neighborhood

Derived

agrarian scissors, crash scissors, dummy scissors, elbow scissors, genetic scissors, grafting scissors, marble scissors, Mayo scissors, Metzenbaum scissors, nail scissors, paper scissors stone, price scissors, probe-scissors, rock-paper-scissors, rock paper scissors, run with scissors, safety scissors, scissor, scissors-and-paste, scissorsbill, scissors bite, scissors congruence, scissors-congruent, scissors crisis, scissors crossing, scissors crossover, scissors-glasses, scissors kick, scissors paper stone, scissorstail, scissors-tailed, texturizing scissors, thinning scissors, trauma scissors

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for scissors. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA