Illustration of shire
- shire 2
1
: an administrative subdivision
especially
: a county in England
2
: any of an old breed of large heavy draft horses of British origin having heavily feathered legs
Examples of shire in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
While Bilbo, played by Martin Freeman, is enjoying a quiet life in the shire, the wizard Gandalf, played by Sir Ian McKellen, asks him to join a group of dwarves on a quest to reclaim the kingdom of Erebo.
—
Catherine Santino, Peoplemag, 7 Dec. 2022
More recently, his works have also provided a fertile shire for nationalists who see themselves in his heroic archetypes.
—Jason Horowitz, BostonGlobe.com, 21 Sep. 2022
To hear Cleveland’s brass, strings, and percussion was to be there on the battlefield with Aragorn, in the shire with Frodo, or in the molten depths beneath Saruman’s tower.
—Zachary Lewis, cleveland, 25 July 2022
The shire; the ring; the elves; the evil of Saruman and his minions: Over and over, Shore conjures these and other elements with musical wizardry equal to Gandalf himself.
—Zachary Lewis, cleveland, 25 July 2022
The shire covers 68,000 square kilometers (26,000 square miles).
—Rod McGuirk, ajc, 21 Oct. 2021
Prince Charles came face to long face with Prince George on a day out in West Wales on Thursday — though this George wasn't the third in line to the throne, but instead a handsome shire horse who shares a name with Charles's 7-year-old grandson.
—Simon Perry, PEOPLE.com, 8 July 2021
From your grandparents watching telly in the deepest corners of the shire, to an agenda-setting chef religiously tuning in from central London each week, who couldn’t help but adore Nigella?
—Liam Hess, Vogue, 30 Apr. 2021
Vengeful Christians took possession of Jewish property and lands, acquiring their wealth and driving them from hearth and shire.
—Talia Lavin, The New Republic, 29 Sep. 2020
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Catherine Santino, Peoplemag, 7 Dec. 2022
More recently, his works have also provided a fertile shire for nationalists who see themselves in his heroic archetypes.
—Jason Horowitz, BostonGlobe.com, 21 Sep. 2022
To hear Cleveland’s brass, strings, and percussion was to be there on the battlefield with Aragorn, in the shire with Frodo, or in the molten depths beneath Saruman’s tower.
—Zachary Lewis, cleveland, 25 July 2022
The shire; the ring; the elves; the evil of Saruman and his minions: Over and over, Shore conjures these and other elements with musical wizardry equal to Gandalf himself.
—Zachary Lewis, cleveland, 25 July 2022
The shire covers 68,000 square kilometers (26,000 square miles).
—Rod McGuirk, ajc, 21 Oct. 2021
Prince Charles came face to long face with Prince George on a day out in West Wales on Thursday — though this George wasn't the third in line to the throne, but instead a handsome shire horse who shares a name with Charles's 7-year-old grandson.
—Simon Perry, PEOPLE.com, 8 July 2021
From your grandparents watching telly in the deepest corners of the shire, to an agenda-setting chef religiously tuning in from central London each week, who couldn’t help but adore Nigella?
—Liam Hess, Vogue, 30 Apr. 2021
Vengeful Christians took possession of Jewish property and lands, acquiring their wealth and driving them from hearth and shire.
—Talia Lavin, The New Republic, 29 Sep. 2020
Dictionary Entries Near shire
Cite this Entry
“Shire.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shire. Accessed 7 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
shire
noun
ˈshī(ə)r 
in place-name compounds ˌshi(ə)r,
shər
1
: a county in England
2
: any of a British breed of tall draft horses
Geographical Definition
Shire
geographical name
Shi·re
ˈshē-(ˌ)rā
ˈshir-ē
river 250 miles (400 kilometers) long in southern Malawi and central Mozambique flowing from Lake Malawi south into the Zambezi River
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share