Shirking
/ˈʃɜːr.kɪŋ/noun
Avoiding work, duty, or responsibility.
Did you know?Shirk entered English in the 19th century as slang meaning to evade a duty, and its exact deeper origin is uncertain, but it likely grew out of German dialect words for something crooked or tricky rather than any ancient magical root.
Etymological Timeline
19th Century
English
shirk
“To evade or dodge a duty, task, or obligation”
19th Century
English
shirker
“A person who evades work or responsibility”
Modern English
English
shirking
“The act of avoiding work or duty”
19th Century
English
shirk
“To avoid or get out of something by trickery or evasion”
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