shovel
Americannoun
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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.
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any fairly large contrivance or machine with a broad blade or scoop for taking up or removing loose matter.
a steam shovel.
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a shovelful.
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Informal. shovel hat.
verb (used with object)
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to take up and cast or remove with a shovel.
to shovel coal.
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to gather up in large quantity roughly or carelessly with or as if with a shovel.
He shoveled food into his mouth.
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to dig or clear with or as if with a shovel.
to shovel a path through the snow.
verb (used without object)
noun
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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
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any machine or part resembling a shovel in action
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Also called: shovelful. the amount that can be contained in a shovel
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short for shovel hat
verb
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to lift (earth, etc) with a shovel
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(tr) to clear or dig (a path) with or as if with a shovel
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(tr) to gather, load, or unload in a hurried or careless way
he shovelled the food into his mouth and rushed away
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
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have shoveledperfect
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have shovelledperfect
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has shoveledperfect 3rd person singular
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has shovelledperfect 3rd person singular
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have been shovelingperfect progressive
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am shovellingprogressive 1st person singular
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are shovelingprogressive
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shovelingparticiple
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is shovellingprogressive 3rd person singular
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are shovellingprogressive
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am shovelingprogressive 1st person singular
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has been shovellingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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have been shovellingperfect progressive
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shovellingparticiple
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has been shovelingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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is shovelingprogressive 3rd person singular
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shovelssingular 3rd person
Past
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had shoveledperfect
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had shovelledperfect
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were shovelingprogressive plural
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was shovelingprogressive singular
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were shovellingprogressive plural
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had been shovellingperfect progressive
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shovelledsimple
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was shovellingprogressive singular
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shovelledparticiple
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shoveledsimple
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shoveledparticiple
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had been shovelingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of shovel
before 900; Middle English schovel, Old English scofl; cognate with Dutch schoffel hoe; akin to German Schaufel shovel
Explanation
A shovel is the tool you need if you want to dig holes in the ground. If you're taking your younger cousins to the beach, be sure to bring lots of pails and shovels so they can build a sandcastle. A shovel has a long handle and a wide, curved blade at the end. By pushing the end of the shovel into the ground and scooping, you can shovel out enough soil to make room for the treasure chest you want to bury. Shovels are useful for clearing snow from sidewalks and driveways too, and you can describe the amount of dirt carried in a shovel as a shovel (or shovelful) of dirt.
Vocabulary lists containing shovel
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.
The point of no return was 1915, when Duchamp, altogether rejecting art’s traditional role as aesthetic creation—metamorphosis—brought that snow shovel and hung it from his studio ceiling as “In Advance of the Broken Arm.”
From The Wall Street Journal • May 30, 2026
But Moriarty said Castro was "not hit by a shovel or a broom. In fact, he was not hit at all," she said.
From Barron's • May 18, 2026
Be on the lookout for a giant shovel.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026
I’m definitely a plastic shovel type of guy, unless we’re going through the ice.
From Slate • Feb. 24, 2026
It was vibrating as strange energy radiated from Gilgamesh's shovel.
From "City of the Plague God" by Sarwat Chadda
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.
