I. ˈwi](ə)r, ˈwa(a)], ˈwe], ](ə) noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English were, from Old English wer; akin to Old High German werī defense, Old Norse ver fishing place, Old English werian to defend, protect, hinder, Old High German werien, werren, to defend, Old Norse verja, Gothic warjan to defend, Latin ap erire to open, op erire to close, cover, Greek erysthai to protect, guard, Sanskrit vṛṇoti he covers, envelops, holds back, surrounds
1. : a fence or enclosure (as of stakes, brushwood, or netting) set in a stream, tideway, or inlet of the sea for taking fish : fishgarth
eel weir
herring weir
2.
a. : a dam in a stream to raise the water level or divert its flow — see leaping weir
b. : a notch in a levee or other barrier across or bordering a stream to regulate the flow of water (as in time of flood) — see wasteweir
3. dialect England : a bank or levee built to hold a river in its bed or to direct it into a new bed
4. : a device (as a notch in a dam) for determining the quantity of water flowing over it from measurements of the depth of water over the crest or sill and known dimensions of the device — see cipolletti weir
II. transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
: to put a weir in or on
weir a river
III. ˈwi(ə)r
Scotland
variant of war