Shrew — Defs

01 a. Wicked; malicious.

1.
Wicked; malicious.[Obs.]

02 n. Originally, a brawling, turbulent, vexatious person of either sex, but now restricted in use to females; a brawler; a scold.

1.
Originally, a brawling, turbulent, vexatious person of either sex, but now restricted in use to females; a brawler; a scold.
“A man . . . grudgeth that shrews [i. e., bad men] have prosperity, or else that good men have adversity.” — Chaucer.

“A man had got a shrew to his wife, and there could be no quiet in the house for her.” — L'Estrange.
2.
Any small insectivore of the genus Sorex and several allied genera of the family Sorecidae. In form and color they resemble mice, but they have a longer and more pointed nose. Some of them are the smallest of all mammals.(Zool.)

Phrases & compounds

Earth shrew — any shrewlike burrowing animal of the family Centetidae, as the tendrac.

Elephant shrew — See under Elephant, Jumping, etc.

Musk shrew — See Desman.

River shrew — an aquatic West African insectivore (Potamogale velox) resembling a weasel in form and size, but having a large flattened and crested tail adapted for rapid swimming. It feeds on fishes.

Shrew mole — a common large North American mole (Scalops aquaticus). Its fine, soft fur is gray with iridescent purple tints.

03 v. t. To beshrew; to curse.

1.
To beshrew; to curse.[Obs.]