The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Shred \Shred\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Shred or Shredded; p. pr.
   & vb. n. Shredding.] [OE. shreden, schreden, AS.
   scre['a]dian; akin to OD. schrooden, OHG. scr?tan, G.
   schroten. See Shred, n.]
   1. To cut or tear into small pieces, particularly narrow and
      long pieces, as of cloth or leather. --Chaucer.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. To lop; to prune; to trim. [Obs.]
      [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Shred \Shred\, n. [OE. shrede, schrede, AS. scre['a]de; akin to
   OD. schroode, G. schrot a piece cut off, Icel. skrjo[eth]r a
   shred, and to E. shroud. Cf. Screed, Scroll, Scrutiny.]
   1. A long, narrow piece cut or torn off; a strip. "Shreds of
      tanned leather." --Bacon.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. In general, a fragment; a piece; a particle. --Shak.
      [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

shred
    n 1: a tiny or scarcely detectable amount [syn: shred,
         scintilla, whit, iota, tittle, smidgen,
         smidgeon, smidgin, smidge]
    2: a small piece of cloth or paper [syn: rag, shred, tag,
       tag end, tatter]
    v 1: tear into shreds [syn: shred, tear up, rip up]