Cheshire
pronunciation
How to pronounce Cheshire in British English:
UK [ˈtʃeʃə(r)]
How to pronounce Cheshire in American English:
US [ˈtʃeʃɪr]
Word Origin
- Cheshire
- 1086, Cestre Scire, from Chester + scir "district" (see shire). Cheshire cat and its proverbial grin are attested from 1770, but the signification is obscure. I made a pun the other day, and palmed it upon Holcroft, who grinned like a Cheshire cat. (Why do cats grin in Cheshire?--Because it was once a county palatine, and the cats cannot help laughing whenever they think of it, though I see no great joke in it.) I said that Holcroft, on being asked who were the best dramatic writers of the day, replied, "HOOK AND I." Mr Hook is author of several pieces, Tekeli, &c. You know what hooks and eyes are, don't you? They are what little boys do up their breeches with. [Charles Lamb, letter to Thomas Manning, Feb. 26, 1808]
Example
- 1. Cheshire cat : and if I stop talking , what am I ?
- 2. An especially menacing cheshire cat .
- 3. 6 / 11 Dunham massey , cheshire
- 4. Mr osborne , who represents a seat in cheshire , is not deaf to such concerns .
- 5. A report of wailing noises and mysterious lights being beamed onto a cemetery in cheshire in july 1996 .