*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of shore

From Middle English schore, from Old English *sċora (attested as sċor- in placenames), from Proto-Germanic *skurô (“rugged rock, cliff, high rocky shore”). Possibly related to Old English sċieran (“to cut”), which surviv

6 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 6 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗
verb

To arrive at the shore · To put ashore.

noun

Land adjoining a non-flowing body of water, such as an ocean, lake or pond. · Land, usually near a port.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English schore, from Old English *sċora (attested as sċor- in placenames), from Proto-Germanic *skurô (“rugged rock, cliff, high rocky shore”). Possibly related to Old English sċieran (“to cut”), which survives today as English shear. Cognate with Middle Dutch scorre (“land washed by the sea”), Middle Low German schor (“shore, coast, headland”), Middle High German schorre ("rocky crag, high rocky shore"; > German Schorre, Schorren (“towering rock, crag”)), and Limburgish sjaor (“riverbank”). Maybe connected with Norwegian Bokmål skjær.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":inh",
        "3": "enm:schore<ety:inh<ang:*sċora>>",
        "id": "land"
      },
      "expansion": "[Appendix:Glossary#inherited|Inherited]] from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang\" : \"gmw-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old English\", \"term\" : \"*sċora\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ang\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"schore\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"shore\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-id=\"land\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"shore\" id=\"English:_land\">"
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    },
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    },
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    },
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      "name": "cog",
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    },
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      },
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    },
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    },
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      "name": "cog",
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        "3": "",
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    },
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        "1": "gmh",
        "2": "schorre"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle High German schorre"
    },
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      "args": {
        "1": "de",
        "2": "Schorre"
      },
      "expansion": "German Schorre"
    },
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      "name": "gloss",
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        "1": "\"rocky crag, high rocky shore\"; > German <i class=\"Latn mention\" lang=\"de\">Schorre</i>, <i class=\"Latn mention\" lang=\"de\">Schorren</i> (“towering rock, crag”)"
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        "3": "",
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      },
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    },
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        "1": "nb",
        "2": "skjær"
      },
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      "schore#Middle_English"
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      "*skurô",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/skurô"
    ],
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      "sċieran",
      "scieran#Old_English"
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      "shear",
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      "scorre#Middle_Dutch"
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      "schor#Middle_Low_German"
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    ],
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    ]
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

A prop or strut supporting some structure or weight above it.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Late Middle English shore (“a prop, a support”) [and other forms], from Middle Dutch schore, schare (“a prop, a stay”) (modern Dutch schoor), and Middle Low German schōre, schāre (“a prop, a stay; barrier; stockade”) (compare Old Norse skorða (“a prop, a stay”) (Norwegian skor, skorda)); further etymology unknown.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Inherited-form mentionshoreenm · a prop, a support
  • Derivation mentionschoredum
  • Cognate mentionschoornl
  • Derivation mentionschōregml
  • Cognate mentionskorðanon · a prop, a stay
  • Cognate mentionskorno
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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    },
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    },
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      "schare#Middle_Dutch"
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
verb

Not followed by up: to provide (something) with support. · Usually followed by up: to reinforce (something at risk of failure).

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Late Middle English shoren (“to prop, to support”) [and other forms], from Middle English shore (“a prop, a support”) (see etymology 2) + -en (suffix forming the infinitive form of verbs); compare Middle Dutch schooren (“to prop up, support”) and Middle Low German schore (“to shovel; to sweep”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Inherited-form mentionshorenenm · to prop, to support
  • Inherited-form mentionshoreenm · a prop, a support
  • Cognate mentionschoorendum · to prop up, support
  • Cognate mentionschoregml · to shovel; to sweep
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Source etymology 4

Original entry ↗
verb

simple past of shear

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

See shear.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Source etymology 5

Original entry ↗
noun

A sewer.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Originally common-shore.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Source etymology 6

Original entry ↗
verb

To threaten or warn unpleasant consequences (for someone); (sometimes) to threaten or warn off or scare away. · To threaten (to rain). · To offer or present (someone something).

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Uncertain. The word is attested in Northern English and Scots; the DSL states that schore "to threaten" is attested before 1400 (a corresponding noun schoyr is attested since 1375: "vith gret schoyr and mannasyng" in Barbour's Bruce), and suggests it might ultimately be related to Old Scots schoir "steep (of a crag)", related to shear. Alternatively, it has been suggested that it might be a variant of score or sure and related to assure.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for shore →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
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Import run
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Permanent entry ID
w-c2hvcmU