shred

Meanings

Noun

• A long, narrow piece cut or torn off; a strip.
• In general, a fragment; a piece; a particle; a very small amount.

Verb

• To cut or tear into narrow and long pieces or strips.
• To reduce by a large percentage.
• To lop; to prune; to trim.
• To ride aggressively.
• To drop fat and water weight before a competition.
• To play very fast (especially guitar solos in rock and metal genres).

Origin

• From Middle English shrede, shred, from Old English sċrēad, sċrēade, from Proto-Germanic *skraudō. escrow.
• From Middle English shreden, from Old English sċrēadian, from Proto-West Germanic *skraudōn, related to Proto-West Germanic *skraudan.