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View synonyms for

shovel

[ shuhv-uhl ]

noun

  1. an implement consisting of a broad blade or scoop attached to a long handle, used for taking up, removing, or throwing loose matter, as earth, snow, or coal.
  2. any fairly large contrivance or machine with a broad blade or scoop for taking up or removing loose matter:

    a steam shovel.

  3. Informal. shovel hat.


verb (used with object)

shoveled, shoveling or (especially British) shovelled, shovelling.
  1. to take up and cast or remove with a shovel:

    to shovel coal.

  2. to gather up in large quantity roughly or carelessly with or as if with a shovel:

    He shoveled food into his mouth.

  3. to dig or clear with or as if with a shovel:

    to shovel a path through the snow.

verb (used without object)

shoveled, shoveling or (especially British) shovelled, shovelling.
  1. to work with a shovel.

shovel

/ ˈʃʌə /

noun

  1. an instrument for lifting or scooping loose material, such as earth, coal, etc, consisting of a curved blade or a scoop attached to a handle
  2. any machine or part resembling a shovel in action
  3. Also calledshovelful the amount that can be contained in a shovel
  4. short for shovel hat
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. to lift (earth, etc) with a shovel
  2. tr to clear or dig (a path) with or as if with a shovel
  3. tr to gather, load, or unload in a hurried or careless way

    he shovelled the food into his mouth and rushed away

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Derived Forms

  • ˈDZ, noun
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Other Word Forms

  • ܲ·DZı adjective
  • ܲ·DZı adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of shovel1

before 900; Middle English schovel, Old English scofl; cognate with Dutch schoffel hoe; akin to German Schaufel shovel
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Word History and Origins

Origin of shovel1

Old English scofl; related to Old High German ūڱ shovel, Dutch schoffel hoe; see shove
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

The not-batteries are shoveled into massive metal containers with soft tops and are trucked to Grassy Mountain, a waste disposal facility in Utah’s Great Salt Lake Desert, officials said.

From

This would have been thanks to a team of engineers led by Joseph Bell who stayed behind to shovel coal into the furnaces to keep the lights on.

From

Developers hope to put shovels in the ground by early 2027, and once underway, the entire project should require about a decade to complete all phases.

From

a wretched group of seniors you must be ... for shoveling out this bull—.

From

Hughes said the choking death resulted from “circumstances beyond our control,” because the patient “shoveled in all the food as fast as he could get it into his mouth.”

From

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shove-ha'pennyshovel beak