scissorv.
/ˈsɪzə/, U.S. /ˈsɪzər/ 1.
a. transitive. To trim the hair on (a part of the body) with scissors; to trim (the hair, beard, etc.) with scissors. Also with adverb, as down, back.
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the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > beautification of the person > beautification of the hair > beautify (the hair) [verb (transitive)] > cut
shearc897
shavec1320
topc1330
dockc1386
clipc1405
pollc1450
roundc1450
coll1483
cow?1507
not1530
trim1530
tonse1555
benotte1594
decurtate1599
scissora1625
to set upa1625
tonsure1793
a1625 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Two Noble Kinsmen (1634) i. ii. 54 My poore Chinne too, for tis not Cizard iust To such a Favorites glasse. View more context for this quotation
1834 J. Reynolds Recoll. Windsor Prison 33 Every head in the prison was scissored down to a quarter of an inch.
1866 Harper's Mag. Dec. 79/2 He had shaved—at least a little—and scissored his luxuriant beard.
1910 C. E. Roche tr. A. France White Stone v. 198 This custom of scissoring the hair of the face, so as to form figures and ornaments.
1983 Observer 13 Nov. 5/2 The beard scissored back to its usual week's growth.
2005 C. C. Pinney Guide Home Pet Grooming (ed. 2) vi. 65 Scotties have long, parted eyebrows, so begin by scissoring the hair between the eyes.
b. transitive. gen. To cut with scissors. Also: to cut into a particular shape or form with scissors. Frequently with adverb, as off, out, etc.
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the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > cutting > cut [verb (transitive)] > with a specific instrument
sawa1225
kembc1480
falchiona1529
hatchet1603
jackknife1806
scissor1840
knive1851
knife1890
paper-knife1898
1840 L. Hunt Seer ix. 21/2 The young shoots of it [sc. ivy]..point in a most elegant manner over the edge of a glass or decanter, seeming to have been newly scissared forth by some fairy hand.
1885 G. M. Fenn Brownsmith's Boy 24 I scissored off two or three berries in the way he had taught me.
1894 D. C. Murray Making of Novelist 31 Each folio being scissored into half a dozen pieces.
1896 Cleveland Jrnl. Med. 1 467 A specialist was imported, who..dilated and scissored her rectum.
1912 Cent. Mag. Apr. 876/1 He..lives out of a paper bag, scissors his cuffs, blacks his shoes with stove polish.
1930 Times 20 Nov. 10/5 Trace the map..on cardboard of uniform thickness, scissor carefully the shape out, and take its centre of gravity.
1993 V. Sage Mirror for Larks 41 A rigid sheet of grey nylon scissored into a polygon.
1998 N. Lawson How to Eat (1999) 115 Squeeze the seeds out of the tomatoes or scissor them over a sieve.
2.
a. transitive. Chiefly with out. To remove, excise.
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1821 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. Nov. 418 By no means a plain, sober, sensible story, but swollen and inflated..every period being scissared as neatly as a round-robin.
1845 North Amer. & Daily Advertiser (Philadelphia) 15 Feb. We have been called, editorially, to scissor out a great many Fires, both small and great.
1934 W. Forrest Behind Front Page ix. 113 The American censor carefully scissored every indication of location in stories written outside the war zone.
1935 Woodland (Calif.) Daily Democrat 12 June 6/7 Some of the trustees went into office, with the announced intention of scissoring out of the board such and sundry trustees as may not have conformed to this and that.
1977 Time 24 Oct. 23/3 The Finance Committee scissored the entire wellhead tax scheme out of the bill.
2011 K. Bielen Words & Music B. Joel iii. 30 Record companies..scissoring out the years of experience and heart the composers invested in their creations.
b. transitive. To cut down (a piece of writing, etc.); to prune. Also with down. Now rare.
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society > leisure > the arts > literature > prose > non-fiction > summary or epitome > summarize or abridge [verb (transitive)]
abrevya1325
comprehendc1369
abridgec1384
shorta1390
suma1398
abbreviate?a1475
shorten1530
to cut short?1542
curtail1553
to knit up1553
to wind up1583
clip1598
epitomize1599
brief1601
contract1604
to shut up1622
decurt1631
to sum up1642
breviate1663
curtilate1665
compendize1693
epitomate1702
to gather up1782
summarize1808
scissor1829
précis1856
to cut down1857
to boil down1880
synopsize1882
essence1888
résumé1888
short copy1891
bovrilize1900
pot1927
summate1951
capsulize1958
profile1970
1829 Edinb. Lit. Jrnl. 21 Mar. 267/1 The Editor of which Annual proposed to have it scissored down into genteel dimensions.
1890 G. B. Shaw in Star 19 Apr. 2/6 The first act was vigorously scissored.
1971 Star-News (Pasadena, Calif.) 4 June a7/2 ‘Midnight Cowboy’ looked like a surrealistic nightmare until an editor scissored it into shape.
c. transitive. To take (written material) from one source to use in another; to clip out (a passage, article, etc.) from a newspaper or other work. Frequently with from, out. Cf. scissors n. and int. Phrases 1. [Compare earlier scissorsing at scissoring n. 1a.]
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the world > space > place > removal or displacement > extraction > extract [verb (transitive)] > by cutting
to cut outc1400
slice?1560
exsect1641
exscind1662
excide1739
snip1801
scissor1832
excise1835
outcut1860
1832 New-Eng. Mag. Sept. 256/1 257 pages of etymology, scissored from ‘the best authorities’.
1865 Dublin Univ. Mag. 1 146 Lucy surreptitiously scissored these charming songs, and kept them in a little volume.
1874 Central Law Jrnl. 1 588/1 We shall..scissor out this, and put it in our box of curiosities.
1919 Outlook 3 Sept. 35/2 Perhaps..the English editor scissored this from a Yankee humorist without credit.
1977 Times 4 Aug. 10/8 He also seemed to have all the best lines. I suspect they came from Michael Green's book and that Mr Took scissored them out and then tailored himself a character to deliver them.
2005 M. J. Homestead Amer. Women Authors & Literary Prop. iv. 173 He assembles a substantial portion of the Irving magazine by scissoring articles by Fanny Fern and others.
3. intransitive. With adverb or preposition. Esp. of a person's arms or legs: to move with a motion which resembles the action of scissors. Also: (of a person) to bring one's arms and legs back and forth past each other.
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1904 Leslie's Monthly Mag. July 285/1 Bobbing lanterns flickered and winked as the striding legs of men scissored across their beams.
1942 C. Woolrich in Black Mask July 123/1 His arms scissored open for him, closed again, like a pair of pliers. He caught him around the waist.
1990 N. Blei Chi Town 272 I would occasionally visit him at his new place, riding an old cage-type elevator with a black metal gate that scissored open and shut.
2007 Contra Costa (Calif.) Times (Nexis) 13 July Tango dancers..added visual interest on several numbers, gliding and scissoring across the stage.
4.
a. transitive. Originally Wrestling. To fix (a person, body part, etc.) in a scissor hold (scissor hold n. at scissors n. and int. Compounds 1b); to grip with crossed legs.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > fighting sports > wrestling > wrestle with [verb (transitive)] > manoeuvres
casta1300
hurl1613
hip1675
back-clamp1713
buttock1823
fling1825
hipe1835
cross-buttock1878
pin1879
hank1881
hammer-lock1905
scissor1907
body slam1932
powerbomb1993
1907 Post-Standard (Syracuse, N.Y.) 24 Apr. 12/3 Rogers scissored the Belgian's leg and began to bend it back.
1974 J. Irving 158-Pound Marriage i. 12 When he rode you with a cross-body ride—your near leg scissored, your far arm hooked—Severin said Jones cut off your circulation somewhere near your spine.
1985 J. Collins Lucky (1986) i. ii. 17 She spread her legs wide, then brought them tightly together, scissoring him in a painful embrace.
2006 J. W. Nichol Midnight Cab xxxv. 325 He scissored the branch between both legs and hauled himself up over it.
b. transitive. To move (one's arms or legs) back and forth in a way resembling the action of scissors; to cross (one's arms or legs).
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the world > movement > motion in specific manner > alternating or reciprocating motion > move to and fro or up and down [verb (transitive)] > move (legs) like scissors
scissor1911
1911 M. C. Grimsgaard Orig. Handbk. for Riders ii. 76 ‘Scissoring’ the legs to the rear and to the front; turning somersaults..are also practised.
1975 R. H. Rimmer Premar Exper. (1976) ii. 162 With her legs scissored around me, I found it impossible not to pat her smooth black behind.
2001 B. Broady In this Block there lives Slag 12 The farmer, looking up, scissored his dangling arms across his thighs, like a cricket umpire signalling dead ball.
2006 N. Pire Plyometrics iii. 97 Jump and scissor your arms and legs at the same time so that your right arm comes forward with your left leg.
5. intransitive. Rugby. To execute a scissors (scissors n. 6).
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > football > rugby football > play rugby football [verb (intransitive)] > actions or manoeuvres
pack1874
heel1884
scrum1890
goal1900
drop1905
to give (or sell) the (or a) dummy1907
ruck1910
jinka1914
to drop out1917
fly-kick1930
scissor1935
quick-heel1936
short-punt1937
touch-kick1954
grubber-kick1958
peel1960
corner-flag1962
to chip and chase1970
box kick1977
1935 Manch. Guardian 30 Dec. 3/7 Seeling finished another movement by scissoring on the left with Innes.
1970 Financial Times 23 Mar. 3/8 Robertson and Turner scissored impeccably for Turner to score a try that Brown converted.
2000 Evening Post (Wellington, N.Z.) (Nexis) 7 Aug. 18 Lomu scissored with Umaga going back to the left.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2014; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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