shelter
Americannoun
-
something beneath, behind, or within which a person, animal, or thing is protected from storms, missiles, adverse conditions, etc.; refuge.
-
the protection or refuge afforded by such a thing.
He took shelter in a nearby barn.
-
protection from blame, incrimination, etc.
-
a dwelling place or home considered as a refuge from the elements.
Everyone's basic needs are food, clothing, and shelter.
-
a building serving as a temporary refuge or residence for abandoned animals, people who are homeless, etc.: animal shelter.
homeless shelter;
animal shelter.
-
Finance. tax shelter.
verb (used with object)
-
to be a shelter for; afford shelter to.
The old barn sheltered him from the rain.
-
to provide with a shelter; place under cover.
-
to protect, as by shelter; take under one's protection.
Parents should not try to shelter their children from normal childhood disappointments.
-
Finance. to invest (money) in a tax shelter.
verb (used without object)
-
to take shelter; find a refuge.
Students sheltered in the gymnasium when they heard the tornado sirens.
-
Finance. to invest money in a tax shelter.
noun
-
something that provides cover or protection, as from weather or danger; place of refuge
-
the protection afforded by such a cover; refuge
-
the state of being sheltered
verb
-
(tr) to provide with or protect by a shelter
-
(intr) to take cover, as from rain; find refuge
-
(tr) to act as a shelter for; take under one's protection
Related Words
See cover.
Other Word Forms
- self-shelter noun
- shelterer noun
- shelteringly adverb
- shelterless adjective
- shelterlessness noun
- unsheltering adjective
Etymology
Origin of shelter
First recorded in 1575–85; of uncertain origin; perhaps alteration of obsolete sheltron “testudo” (a protective vault formed of Roman legionaries' shields), Old English scieldtruma, equivalent to scield + truma “body of men in battle formation”; shield ( def. ), trim
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"My house is completely flooded. I don't know where to go, but I hope there is some safe shelter where I can take my family," she told AFP.
From Barron's
Uganda had been a notable exception to a worldwide pull-up-the-drawbridge trend, granting shelter to almost two million desperate neighbors, allowing them to work and even giving many of them land to farm.
Heavy monsoon rain overwhelmed swaths of Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia this week, leaving thousands of people stranded without shelter or critical supplies.
From Barron's
Flooding has wreaked havoc and left parts of northern Perlis state under water, with two people dead and tens of thousands forced into shelters.
From BBC
Another replied concerned for the generated animals' welfare, adding "there are plenty of dogs sitting in animal shelters who would like to have a nice home".
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
