From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishshireshire /ʃaɪə $ ʃaɪr/ noun [countable] 1 → the shires2 British English old usePG a county
Examples from the Corpus
shire• Well, if I did, I'd need to sell old Blazer and buy a shire horse to carry me!• Letters under the privy seal were prepared by the thousand, and instructions were sent to the chief commissioners in each shire.• The representatives of shire and suburb had arrived on the Monday evening, and had drunk and dined exceedingly well.• In local government, many of our shire counties and districts have led the way in raising the quality of public service.• He had not realised how much he would miss his family and the work of breeding and breaking the shires with George.• The extent to which a powerful magnate could dominate the shire community and act as a focus for local sentiment varied.• He looked as if he had just stepped out of a drawing room in the shires.• From the back of a barn three shire horses came thundering out - a stallion and two mares. 