Sheer,adv.Clean; quite; atonce. [Obs.]Milton.

Sheer,v. t. [SeeShear.]Toshear. [Obs.]Dryden.

Sheer,v. i. [imp. & p.p.Sheered (?);p. pr. & vb. n.Sheering.] [D.sheren to shear, cut, withdraw, warp. SeeShear.]To decline or deviate from the line of the propercourse; to turn aside; to swerve; as, a shipsheers from hercourse; a horsesheers at a bicycle.

To sheer off,to turn or move aside to adistance; to move away. --To sheer up,toapproach obliquely.

Sheer,n.1.(Naut.)(a)The longitudinal upwardcurvature of the deck, gunwale, and lines of a vessel, as when viewedfrom the side.(b)The position of a vesselriding at single anchor and swinging clear of it.

2.A turn or change in a course.

Give the canoe asheer and get nearer to theshore.

3.pl.Shears SeeShear.

Sheer batten(Shipbuilding),a longstrip of wood to guide the carpenters in following the sheerplan. --Sheer boom,a boom slanting acrossa stream to direct floating logs to one side. --Sheerhulk.SeeShear hulk, underHulk. --Sheer plan, orSheer draught(Shipbuilding),a projection of the lines of a vessel on avertical longitudinal plane passing through the middle line of thevessel. --Sheer pole(Naut.),aniron rod lashed to the shrouds just above the dead-eyes and parallelto the ratlines. --Sheer strake(Shipbuilding),the strake under the gunwale on the topside.Totten. --To break sheer(Naut.),to deviate from sheer, and risk fouling theanchor.

Sheer (?),a. [OE.shere,skere, pure, bright, Icel.sk?rr; akin toskīrr, AS.scīr, OS.skīri,MHG.schīr, G.schier, Dan.sk?r, Sw.skär, Goth.skeirs clear, and E.shine.√157. SeeShine,v. i.]1.Bright; clear; pure; unmixed."Sheer ale."Shak.

Thousheer, immaculate, and silverfountain.

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

3.Being only what it seems to be; obvious;simple; mere; downright; as,sheer folly;sheernonsense. "Asheer impossibility."DeQuincey.

It is not asheer advantage to have severalstrings to one's bow.

4.Stright up and down; vertical;prpendicular.

Asheer precipice of a thousandfeet.

It was at least
Nine roods ofsheer ascent.