shoe

American  

[shoo] / ʃu /

noun

PLURAL

shoes

PLURAL

shoon

1. an external covering for the human foot, usually of leather and consisting of a more or less stiff or heavy sole and a lighter upper part ending a short distance above, at, or below the ankle.

2. an object or part resembling a shoe in form, position, or use.

3. a horseshoe or a similar plate for the hoof of some other animal.

4. a ferrule or the like, as of iron, for protecting the end of a staff, pole, etc.

5. brake shoe.

6. the outer casing of a pneumatic automobile tire.

7. a drag or skid for a wheel of a vehicle.

8. a part having a larger area than the end of an object on which it fits, serving to disperse or apply its weight or thrust.

9. the sliding contact by which an electric car or locomotive takes its current from the third rail.

10. Civil Engineering.

    1. a member supporting one end of a truss or girder in a bridge.

    2. a hard and sharp foot of a pile or caisson for piercing underlying soil.

11. a small molding, as a quarter round, closing the angle between a baseboard and a floor.

12. the outwardly curved portion at the base of a downspout.

13. a piece of iron or stone, sunk into the ground, against which the leaves of a gateway are shut.

14. a device on a camera that permits an accessory, as a flashgun, to be attached.

15. a band of iron on the bottom of the runner of a sleigh.

16. Cards.  dealing box.

17. Furniture.

    1. a cuplike metal piece for protecting the bottom of a leg.

    2. a fillet beneath an ornamental foot, as a pad or scroll foot.

18. Printing.  a box into which unusable type is thrown.

19. a chute conveying grain to be ground into flour.

20. Carpentry.  soleplate.

21. Nautical.  a thickness of planking covering the bottom of the keel of a wooden vessel to protect it against rubbing.

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verb (used with object)

shod, shoed, shod, shoed, shodden, shoeing.

1. to provide or fit with a shoe or shoes.

2. to protect or arm at the point, edge, or face with a ferrule, metal plate, or the like.

idioms

1. fill someone's shoes,  to take the place and assume the obligations of another person.

   She felt that no stepmother could ever hope to fill her late mother's shoes.

2. the shoe is on the other foot,  the circumstances are reversed; a change of places has occurred.

   Now that we are rich and they are poor the shoe is on the other foot.

3. where the shoe pinches,  the true cause of the trouble or worry.

4. drop the other shoe,  to complete an action or enterprise already begun.

5. in someone's shoes,  in a position or situation similar to that of another.

   I wouldn't like to be in his shoes.

shoe British  

/ ʃuː /

noun

1. 1. one of a matching pair of coverings shaped to fit the foot, esp one ending below the ankle, having an upper of leather, plastic, etc, on a sole and heel of heavier leather, rubber, or synthetic material

   2. ( as modifier )

      shoe cleaner

2. anything resembling a shoe in shape, function, position, etc, such as a horseshoe

3. a band of metal or wood on the bottom of the runner of a sledge

4. (in baccarat, etc) a boxlike device for holding several packs of cards and allowing the cards to be dispensed singly

5. a base for the supports of a superstructure of a bridge, roof, etc

6. a metal collector attached to an electric train that slides along the third rail and picks up power for the motor

7. engineering a lining to protect from and withstand wear See brake shoe pile shoe

8. informal  to be in another person's situation

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verb

1. to furnish with shoes

2. to fit (a horse) with horseshoes

3. to furnish with a hard cover, such as a metal plate, for protection against friction or bruising

shoe More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing shoe

• comfortable as an old shoe
• fill someone's shoes
• goody-two-shoes
• if the shoe fits
• in someone's shoes
• step into someone's shoes
• wait for the other shoe to drop

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Other Word Forms

• reshoe verb (used with object)
• shoeless adjective
• undershoe noun
• unshoed adjective

Etymology

Origin of shoe

First recorded before 900; (noun) Middle English scho(o), Old English sceō(h), cognate with German Schuh, Old Norse skōr, Gothic skōhs; (verb) Middle English schon, Old English scōg(e)an, cognate with Middle Low German schoi(g)en, Old Norse skūa

Example Sentences

Northern bankers financed slave mortgages and plantation finances, even as Northern manufacturers profited from selling cloth and shoes for enslaved workers.

From The Wall Street Journal

The Nano Banana Pro within Gemini opened my eyes but inexplicably changed my face, my pose and my shoe strap.

From The Wall Street Journal

She was wearing a blue sweatshirt, blue pants and white-and-black New Balance shoes.

From Los Angeles Times

Dimon’s decision ends months of speculation by everyone from bankers and real-estate brokers to shoe shiners about the U.S. bank’s next move.

From The Wall Street Journal

Mikey Resendez, all smiles and red converse shoes, sat down in the morning and thanked Styles for his haircut before it was even done.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• boot
• cleat
• cowboy boot
• loafer
• pump
• running shoe
• slipper
• sneaker
• tennis shoe