Word
shirley
Phoneticsshirley
/ˈʃɝɫi/
Definition
n. a common English name for a woman or a family name.
n. a female given name or a habitational surname of English origin.
Examples
“Shirley you didn't eat the last cookie.”
“When asked to work late, she replied with a cheerful 'Shirley I have plans,' avoiding a direct refusal.”
Examples
simple
“Shirley you didn't eat the last cookie.”
contextual
“When asked to work late, she replied with a cheerful 'Shirley I have plans,' avoiding a direct refusal.”
Usage
Always capitalized as a proper noun.
Etymology
English place name from Old English sċīr (“county”) + lēah (“meadow”). Equivalent to shire + -ley (“lea”). More at shire, leigh.
A pun on surely and the name Shirley; probably inspired by the 1980 comedy film Airplane!, which has the exchange: "Surely you can’t be serious." "I am serious — and don’t call me Shirley."
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/shirley