shirk C2+ Topic:Law & Government US /ʃɝk/ UK /ʃɜːk/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 verb to avoid or neglect a duty or responsibility He never shirked the hard work that the job demanded. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 verb · to avoid or neglect a duty... evadedodgeavoidneglectducksidestep ↔ Opposites fulfillundertakeembracetackle Word family Derived forms shirkershirking Etymology AI details First attested in the 17th century, perhaps from German Schurke ('scoundrel, rogue'), of uncertain ultimate origin. Topics Law & Government External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # shirk **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** verb **IPA (US):** /ʃɝk/ **IPA (UK):** /ʃɜːk/ ## Meanings 1. to avoid or neglect a duty or responsibility ## Examples - He never shirked the hard work that the job demanded. ## Synonyms - evade - dodge - avoid - neglect - duck - sidestep ## Antonyms - fulfill - undertake - embrace - tackle ## Derived Forms - shirker - shirking ## Etymology First attested in the 17th century, perhaps from German Schurke ('scoundrel, rogue'), of uncertain ultimate origin. ## AI Etymology Shirk is first attested in the 17th century, perhaps from German Schurke ('scoundrel, rogue'), of uncertain ultimate origin. The quoted older sense, "scoundrel, rogue," supplies the immediate semantic anchor for shirk. The formation is best read as borrowed: the word shirk carries its older form-history into a compact English lexical shape. In present English it is used as a verb, "to avoid or neglect a duty or responsibility". English derivatives include shirker and shirking. The result is a verb whose etymology preserves both the older form and the later English specialization. ## Topics - Law & Government markdown