Shire
Shire , noun
[Anglo-Saxon scīre, scīr, a division, province, county. Compare Sheriff.]
1.
A portion of Great Britain originally under the supervision of an earl; a territorial division, usually identical with a county, but sometimes limited to a smaller district; as, Wiltshire, Yorkshire, Richmondshire, Hallamshire.
An indefinite number of these hundreds make up a county or shire.
2.
A division of a State, embracing several contiguous townships; a county. [United States]
The Tyne, Tees, Humber, Wash, Yare, Stour, and Thames separate the counties of Northumberland, Durham, Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, etc.
Shire is commonly added to the specific designation of a county as a part of its name; as, Yorkshire instead of York shire, or the shire of York; Berkshire instead of Berks shire. Such expressions as the county of Yorkshire, which in a strict sense are tautological, are used in England. In the United States the composite word is sometimes the only name of a county; as, Berkshire county, as it is called in Massachusetts, instead of Berks county, as in Pensylvania.
Collocations (6)
Knight of the shire , See under Knight.
Shire clerk , an officer of a county court; also, an under sheriff. [English]
Shire mote (Old. Eng. Law) , the county court; sheriff's turn, or court. [Obsolete] — Cowell
Shire reeve (Old Eng. Law) , the reeve, or bailiff, of a shire; a sheriff. — Burrill
Shire town , the capital town of a county; a county town.
Shire wick , a county; a shire. [Obsolete] — Holland