Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A twisted filament; a thread.
  • To glance shyly or slyly; look askance; make eyes; leer; peer; pry.
  • To twinkle; sparkle; wink.
  • noun A sly glance; a leer.
  • To twist; twirl.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • intransitive verb obsolete To peep; to glance obliquely; to leer.
  • intransitive verb obsolete To twinkle; to glance; to gleam.
  • intransitive verb obsolete To sing, or twitter.
  • noun obsolete A twisted filament; a thread.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A twisted filament; a thread.
  • verb intransitive To glance shyly or slyly; look askance; make eyes; leer; peer; pry.
  • verb intransitive To twinkle; sparkle; wink.
  • noun A sly glance; a leer.
  • verb transitive To twist; twirl.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English *twir, *twirn, from Old English *twirn, *tweorn (“twine, thread”), from Proto-Germanic *twiznaz (“thread”), from Proto-Indo-European *duwo- (“two”). Cognate with Dutch tweern ("thread"), German Zwirn ("thread, twine"), Old English twīn ("twine"). More at twine.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English twiren ("to peep out, pry about, twinkle, glance, gleam"), cognate with Middle High German zwieren ("to spy"), Bavarian zwiren, zwieren ("to spy, glance"). Perhaps related to Old English twinclian ("to twinkle"). More at twinkle.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Perhaps from a dialectal form of *twere, from Middle English *tweren, from Old English þweran ("to stir") (found in compound āþweran ("to agitate, stir")), from Proto-Germanic *þweranan (“to stir”), from Proto-Indo-European *twer- (“to turn, twirl, swirl, move”). Cognate with Bavarian zweren ("to stir"). Compare twirk, twirl.

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Examples

  • Laydees an Jennulmens, or shud Ai sai: Cool Cats and Hip Doods: We has a speshul treet fur yu nao – nawt oenlee a trans at lantix dyooet bai me, Ambercat an Mr “Iyun” Lungdoc butt! awlso a rilly egg syting gest appeerunce: Nao well noen in Cheezlan fur her poor trayul ob inannianniannimayt objex, in Low Budgie Porduktshuns, the Cheez-faymus Eeckthecat is egg spandexing her reper twire to plai inannianniannimayt myosicul instrooments!

    idiot friends - Lolcats 'n' Funny Pictures of Cats - I Can Has Cheezburger? 2009

  • When sparkling stars twire not thou gild'st the even.

    National Poetry Day communicator 2004

  • When sparkling stars twire not thou gild’st the even.

    Sonnet 28 1914

  • The verb 'to twire' occurs in Shakespeare's _Sonnets_, xxviii, 12, and frequently elsewhere.p. 320 _Hogan-Mogan_.

    The Works of Aphra Behn, Volume II Aphra Behn 1664

  • When sparkling stars twire not thou guil'st th 'eauen.

    Sonnets (1609 Edition) 1609

  • When sparkling stars twire not thou gild'st the even.

    Sonnets 1593

  • When sparkling stars twire not thou gild'st the even.

    Shakespeare's Sonnets William Shakespeare 1590

  • When sparkling stars twire not thou gild’st the even.

    The Sonnets 2004

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