n. 泼妇

[法] 捍妇, 泼妇

Shrew \Shrew\, a. [OE. shrewe, schrewe. Cf. {Shrewd}.]
Wicked; malicious. [Obs.] --Chaucer.


Shrew \Shrew\, n. [See {Shrew}, a.]
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. [AS. scre['a]wa; -- so called because supposed to be
venomous. ] (Zo["o]l.) Any small insectivore of the genus
{Sorex} and several allied genera of the family
{Sorecid[ae]}. 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.

Note: The common European species are the house shrew
({Crocidura araneus}), and the erd shrew ({Sorex
vulgaris}) (see under {Erd}.). In the United States
several species of {Sorex} and {Blarina} are common, as
the broadnosed shrew ({S. platyrhinus}), Cooper's shrew
({S. Cooperi}), and the short-tailed, or mole, shrew
({Blarina brevicauda}). Th American water, or marsh,
shrew ({Neosorex palustris}), with fringed feet, is
less common. The common European water shrews are
{Crossopus fodiens}, and the oared shrew (see under
{Oared}).

{Earth shrew}, any shrewlike burrowing animal of the family
{Centetid[ae]}, as the tendrac.

{Elephant shrew}, {Jumping shrew}, {Mole 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.


Shrew \Shrew\, v. t. [See {Shrew}, a., and cf. {Beshrew}.]
To beshrew; to curse. [Obs.] ``I shrew myself.'' --Chaucer.