Sheer \Sheer\, adv. Clean; quite; at once. [Obs.]

--Milton.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
 

Sheer \Sheer\, v. t. [See Shear.]

To shear. [Obs.]

--Dryden.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
 

Sheer \Sheer\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Sheered; p. pr. & vb. n. Sheering.]

[D. sheren to shear, cut, withdraw, warp. See Shear.]

To decline or deviate from the line of the proper course; to turn aside; to swerve; as, a ship sheers from her course; a horse sheers at a bicycle.

To sheer off, to turn or move aside to a distance; to move away.

To sheer up, to approach obliquely.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
 

Sheer \Sheer\, n.

1. (Naut.)
   (a) The longitudinal upward curvature of the deck, gunwale, and lines of a vessel, as when viewed from the side.
   (b) The position of a vessel riding at single anchor and swinging clear of it.

2. A turn or change in a course.

Give the canoe a sheer and get nearer to the shore. --Cooper.

3. pl. Shears See Shear.

Sheer batten (Shipbuilding), a long strip of wood to guide the carpenters in following the sheer plan.

Sheer boom, a boom slanting across a stream to direct floating logs to one side.

Sheer hulk. See Shear hulk, under Hulk.

Sheer plan, or Sheer draught (Shipbuilding), a projection of the lines of a vessel on a vertical longitudinal plane passing through the middle line of the vessel.

Sheer pole (Naut.), an iron rod lashed to the shrouds just above the dead-eyes and parallel to the ratlines.

Sheer strake (Shipbuilding), the strake under the gunwale on the top side. --Totten.

To break sheer (Naut.), to deviate from sheer, and risk fouling the anchor.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
 

Sheer \Sheer\, a. [OE. shere, skere, pure, bright, Icel. sk?rr; akin to sk[=i]rr, AS. sc[=i]r, OS. sk[=i]ri, MHG. sch[=i]r, G. schier, Dan. sk?r, Sw. sk["a]r, Goth. skeirs clear, and E. shine. [root]157. See Shine, v. i.]

1. Bright; clear; pure; unmixed. ``Sheer ale.'' --Shak.

Thou sheer, immaculate, and silver fountain. --Shak.

2. Very thin or transparent; -- applied to fabrics; as, sheer muslin.

3. Being only what it seems to be; obvious; simple; mere; downright; as, sheer folly; sheer nonsense. ``A sheer impossibility.'' --De Quincey.

It is not a sheer advantage to have several strings to one's bow. --M. Arnold.

4. Stright up and down; vertical; prpendicular.

A sheer precipice of a thousand feet. --J. D. Hooker.

It was at least Nine roods of sheer ascent. --Wordsworth.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)