shredded; shredding; shreds
1
transitive
: to cut or tear (something) into shreds
shredded the documents
2
transitive
: demolish sense 2
… sharp lawyers shredding hapless witnesses on live television …—
Charles Krauthammer
Charles Krauthammer3
intransitive
: to come apart in or break into shreds
The cloth had shredded.
4
a
intransitive
: to ski or engage in a board sport (such as snowboarding, skateboarding, or surfing) with exceptional skill
At its regular meeting Monday, the Cullman City Council signed off on constructing a place where skateboarders can … shred … and ollie to their hearts' content.—Benjamin Bullard
Benjamin Bullard
b
transitive
: to shred on (a surface)
For fans of snow sports, Beach Mountain Resort, Sugar Mountain Resort and Appalachian Ski Mountain offer sweet powdery slopes to shred.—Luke Weir
Luke WeirAt one point, Paul was thought by many to be the best surfer on the planet, a guy who had the rare ability to totally shred waves with radical moves and yet do it very gracefully and with a beautiful flowing style.—Corky Carroll
Corky Carroll5
transitive + intransitive
: to play an electric guitar with great skill and speed
She shreds on guitar and has the voice of an angel.—Rachel Stone
Rachel Stone… this child musician has to be able to shred the guitar at an adult, professional level.—Kerry Clawson
Kerry Clawson6
shredder
noun
Examples of shred in a Sentence
Noun
The wallpaper is in shreds.
His reputation was in shreds after the arrest.
He struggled to retain a shred of his dignity.
Verb
Shred the cabbage and add it to the salad.
shredded some cooked chicken for the soup
Recent Examples on the Web
Susanne Rust, Los Angeles Times, 11 June 2025
In a shred of goods news, final sales to private domestic purchasers — a key gauge of underlying demand in the economy — accelerated to 3% in the first quarter from 2.9% in the fourth quarter.
—Bryan Mena, CNN Money, 30 Apr. 2025
Maury Brown, Forbes.com, 18 June 2025
Residents can dump their bulky items, get sensitive documents shredded and finally toss that ancient computer from 2002 at a CR&R event from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m., Saturday June 14 at the City Public Works Yard on West Struck Avenue.
—Samantha Gowen, Oc Register, 9 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for shred
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Noun
The material underfoot was dark brown and appeared to be a mix of wood chips and woody debris, dotted with cast-off rubber and plastic — the shred of a Spalding basketball here, a purple plastic squirrel there.
—Susanne Rust, Los Angeles Times, 11 June 2025
In a shred of goods news, final sales to private domestic purchasers — a key gauge of underlying demand in the economy — accelerated to 3% in the first quarter from 2.9% in the fourth quarter.
—Bryan Mena, CNN Money, 30 Apr. 2025
Verb
The Rays have struggled to build a new ballpark to replace Tropicana Field, and that issue was compounded when Hurricane Milton shredded the roof off The Trop.
—Maury Brown, Forbes.com, 18 June 2025
Residents can dump their bulky items, get sensitive documents shredded and finally toss that ancient computer from 2002 at a CR&R event from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m., Saturday June 14 at the City Public Works Yard on West Struck Avenue.
—Samantha Gowen, Oc Register, 9 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for shred
Cite this Entry
“Shred.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shred. Accessed 30 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
shred
2 of 2 verb
shredded; shredding
: to cut or tear into shreds
shred paper
shred cabbage
shredder
noun
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