different between shred vs screed

English

Pronunciation

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /???d/
• Rhymes: -?d

Etymology 1

From Middle English shrede, shred, from Old English s?r?ad, s?r?ade, from Proto-Germanic *skraud? (“a cut, shred”). Doublet of escrow.

Noun

shred (plural shreds)

1. A long, narrow piece cut or torn off; a strip.
2. In general, a fragment; a piece; a particle; a very small amount.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:modicum.

Related terms

• screed

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English shreden, from Old English s?r?adian, from Proto-West Germanic *skraud?n, related to Proto-West Germanic *skraudan (“to cut up, shred”).

Verb

shred (third-person singular simple present shreds, present participle shredding, simple past shredded, past participle shredded or shred)

1. To cut or tear into narrow and long pieces or strips.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Chaucer to this entry?)
2. To reduce by a large percentage.
3. (obsolete, transitive) To lop; to prune; to trim.
4. (snowboarding) To ride aggressively.
5. (bodybuilding) To drop fat and water weight before a competition.
6. (music, slang) To play very fast (especially guitar solos in rock and metal genres).

Derived terms

• shredder

Translations

References

Further reading

• shred in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• shred in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

Anagrams

• herds, sherd

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, Ireland) IPA^(key): /sk?i?d/
• (General American, Scotland) IPA^(key): /sk?id/
• Rhymes: -i?d

Etymology 1

From Middle English screde [and other forms], a variant of shrede (“fragment, scrap; strip of cloth; strip cut off from a larger piece; band or thread woven into fabric; element, streak”) (whence shred (noun)), from Old English s?r?ad, s?r?ade (“a piece cut off; paring, shred”), from Proto-Germanic *skraud? (“a piece, shred; a cut, crack”), from *skraudan? (“to cut up, shred”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- (“to cut off”). The English word is cognate with Old Frisian skr?d.

Noun

screed (plural screeds)

1. (chiefly Ireland, Newfoundland, Scotland, dated) A piece or narrow strip cut or torn off from a larger whole; a shred. [from mid 14th c.]

   Synonym: scrid
2. (chiefly regional Britain, Scotland, dated) A piece of land, especially one that is narrow.
3. (chiefly Northern England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, dated) A rent, a tear.

   Synonyms: cut, rip
4. A piece of writing (such as an article, letter, or list) or a speech, especially if long.
5. (by extension) A speech or piece of writing which contains angry and extended criticism. [from late 18th c.]

   Synonyms: harangue, polemic, rant, tirade, diatribe; see also Thesaurus:diatribe
6. Chiefly in the plural form screeds: a large quantity.
8. (construction, masonry) Senses relating to building construction and masonry.
   1. A tool, usually a long strip of wood or other material, placed on a floor to be covered with concrete, a wall to be plastered, etc., as a guide for producing a smooth, flat surface.
   2. A tool such as a long strip of wood or other material which is drawn over a wet layer of concrete, plaster, etc., to make it smooth and flat; also, a machine that achieves this effect; a screeder.

      Synonym: strickle
   3. A smooth, flat layer of concrete, plaster, or similar material, especially if acting as a base for paving stones, tiles, wooden planks, etc.

Derived terms

• floating screed

Related terms

• shred

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English screde, Early Middle English screda, a variant of shreden, shrede (“to chop, cut up, hack; to cut to shape; to maim, wound; to prune, trim”) [and other forms] (whence shred (verb)), from Old English scr?adian (“to cut up, shred; to cut off, prune”), from Proto-Germanic *skraudan? (“to cut up, shred”), see further at etymology 1; later uses are derived from the noun screed.

Verb

screed (third-person singular simple present screeds, present participle screeding, simple past and past participle screeded)

1. (transitive, chiefly Northern England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, dated) To rend, to shred, to tear.

   Synonyms: cut, rip
2. (transitive, Scotland, also figuratively, dated) To read or repeat from memory fluently or glibly; to reel off.
3. (transitive, construction, masonry) To use a screed to produce a smooth, flat surface of concrete, plaster, or similar material; also (generally) to put down a layer of concrete, plaster, etc.
4. (intransitive, Scotland) To become rent or torn.

Translations

Etymology 3

Probably imitative; compare screech, skreigh.

Noun

screed (plural screeds) (Northern Ireland, Scotland)

1. (chiefly humorous) A (discordant) sound or tune played on bagpipes, a fiddle, or a pipe.
2. The sound of something scratching or tearing.

Translations

Verb

screed (third-person singular simple present screeds, present participle screeding, simple past and past participle screeded) (Northern Ireland, Scotland, rare)

1. (intransitive, chiefly humorous) To play bagpipes, a fiddle, or a pipe.
2. (intransitive) To make a discordant or harsh scratching or tearing sound.
3. (transitive, chiefly humorous, obsolete) To play (a sound or tune) on bagpipes, a fiddle, or a pipe.

Translations

Etymology 4

From scree (“loose, stony debris”) +? -ed.

Adjective

screed (not comparable)

1. Strewn with scree.

Translations

References

Further reading

• screed on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• “Melanie & Mike” (20 July 1998) , “Spotlight on … Screed”, in Take Our Word for It?^[2], archived from the original on 3 July 2017.

Anagrams

• Creeds, ceders, creeds