-shire

See also: shire

English

Etymology

See shire.

Pronunciation

(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /-ʃə/, /-ʃɪə/, /-ʃaɪə/ (see usage notes)
(General American) IPA^(key): /-ʃɚ/, /-ʃɪ(ə)ɹ/, /-ʃaɪɚ/ (see usage notes)

Suffix

-shire

A combining form used in the names of British counties.

Usage notes

While multiple pronunciations are given above for this suffix, they are not freely interchangeable. In normal usage, most counties take /-ʃə(ɹ)/, though /-ʃɪə(ɹ)/ is also possible. However, in the names of some Scottish counties, it is sometimes pronounced as /-ʃaɪə(ɹ)/ (Scottish English /-ʃʌɪɹ/), reflecting the local pronunciation. Speakers of Scottish English may extend this pronunciation to all county names; it is also quite common in American English for county names (but not for American locales named after them).

References

“-shire”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.

Anagrams

Hersi, Hires, Hiser, Sheri, Shier, heirs, hi-res, hires, reish, shier