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Added 3 October 2026

shut

/ʃʌt/ verb

In Latin: claudō Wiktionary

verb Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about shut at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

To close, in various senses. To remove or block an opening, gap or passage through.
Please shut the door.
To remove or block an opening, gap or passage through.
Please shut the door.
To make or become unreceptive.
He has shut his mind to new ideas.

adjective

Closed, not open, in any of various senses. Physically sealed, obstructed, folded together, etc.
A shut door barred our way into the house.
Physically sealed, obstructed, folded together, etc.
A shut door barred our way into the house.
Not available for use or operation.
Phone lines are now shut.

noun

The act or time of shutting; close.
the shut of a door
A door or cover; a shutter. .mw-parser-output .defdate{font-size:smaller}
The line or place where two pieces of metal are welded together.

noun

A narrow alley or passage acting as a short cut through the buildings between two streets.

Origin

From Middle English schitten, schetten, from Old English sċyttan (“to cause rapid movement, shoot a bolt, shut, bolt”), from Proto-West Germanic *skuttjan, from Proto-Germanic *skutjaną, *skuttijaną (“to bar, bolt”), from Proto-Germanic *skuttą, *skuttjō (“bar, bolt, shed”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kewd- (“to drive, fall upon, rush”). The Modern English word was originally a dialect form; the Old English word would have normally merged with shit. Cognate with Dutch schutten (“to shut in, lock up”), Low German schütten (“to shut, lock in”), German schützen (“to shut out, dam, protect, guard”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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