shovel
Americannoun
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shovels
plural
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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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shovels,
present (3rd person singular)
-
shoveled,
past participle, past
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shovelled,
past participle, past (especially British)
-
shoveling,
present participle
-
shovelling
present participle (especially British)
-
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)
-
shovels,
present (3rd person singular)
-
shoveled,
past participle, past
-
shovelled,
past participle, past (especially British)
-
shoveling,
present participle
-
shovelling
present participle (especially British)
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
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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shovelsimple
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shovelssimple
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have shoveledperfect
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have shovelledperfect
-
has shoveledperfect
-
has shovelledperfect
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am shovelingprogressive
-
am shovellingprogressive
-
are shovelingprogressive
-
are shovellingprogressive
-
is shovelingprogressive
-
is shovellingprogressive
-
have been shovelingperfect progressive
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have been shovellingperfect progressive
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has been shovelingperfect progressive
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has been shovellingperfect progressive
Past
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shoveledsimple
-
shovelledsimple
-
had shoveledperfect
-
had shovelledperfect
-
was shovelingprogressive
-
was shovellingprogressive
-
were shovelingprogressive
-
were shovellingprogressive
-
had been shovelingperfect progressive
-
had been shovellingperfect 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.
See Examples For:
Sewage Joe and almost every character I play either has a wrench or a shovel.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026
When “Digger” briefly strikes this resonant note, its warring aspects begin to coalesce, before Iñárritu strikes them with a shovel and breaks everything up again.
From Salon ● Oct. 5, 2026
First, he assumes that they’re as gullible as he is—that, since he believes the compliments they shovel his way, they’ll believe his shovelings too.
From Slate ● Sep. 10, 2026
In a day of action at Syston Brook, volunteers mucked in to shovel "absolutely solid" silt out of the concrete-bottomed channel, which was then removed by the Environment Agency.
From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026
Then he sets it inside and picks up his shovel again.
From "The Sea in Winter" by Christine Day
Sheriff’s cadaver dogs, deputies with shovels and a backhoe were seen at work.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
In Dhunge, Navraj Upretti waded through knee-high sludge towards his home, flanked by two rescuers carrying shovels by his side.
From Barron's ● Aug. 30, 2026
Companies making the picks and shovels of the AI rush benefited most from Nvidia’s earnings, with chip maker Micron Technology jumping 4.6% premarket while Nvidia leapt 7.5%.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
Retirees looking to permanently ditch their snow shovels will find Tucson to be one of the West’s better values.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026
When the big stuff is gone we switch to shovels and rakes.
From "The Truth as Told by Mason Buttle" by Leslie Connor
We both cooked, kept house, made beds, shoveled snow, mowed the lawn, handled the finances, and bought, built or leased the 11 different homes we lived in before retiring.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 24, 2026
The snow has been shoveled to the side, but it remains hazardous for both pedestrians and drivers, and needs an extra boost to go away in a timely fashion.
From Barron's ● Jan. 29, 2026
The share count will increase when newly created stock is shoveled to executives as part of their compensation or if shares are issued to help pay for acquisitions.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 28, 2025
This time on Jan. 6, Capitol workers shoveled a thin blanket of snow outside a quiet building.
From Slate ● Jan. 6, 2025
“Thanks, Uncle Solly,” Jackson said as he shoveled the first forkful into his mouth.
From "I Survived the Great Alaska Earthquake, 1964" by Lauren Tarshis
All memory of Nancy's reign - if you want to call it that - will be shovelled under a carpet now by anybody and everybody culpable in the process of appointing him.
From BBC ● Jan. 5, 2026
Mercifully, it ended there, but only after Butland shovelled another couple of attempts away as PSV threatened to run riot on an evening when they vanquished a few demons of their own.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2023
The moves in yields have shovelled pressure on currencies offering low returns.
From Reuters ● Aug. 22, 2023
Under the watch of a few tearful mourners, workers hurriedly shovelled the sandy earth into one grave on Monday.
From Reuters ● Apr. 18, 2022
The BFG grabbed the garden spade and scooped up all the eggs, sausages, bacon and potatoes in one go and shovelled them into his enormous mouth.
From "The BFG" by Roald Dahl
Big Tech is shoveling billions of dollars into the AI buildout, leaving investors spooked and analysts behind.
From Barron's ● Aug. 22, 2026
Baling hay and shoveling corn paid $1.25 per hour, and was also done in full sun.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 7, 2026
PIV lured megastar golfers Phil Mickelson, Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau, Dustin Johnson and others away from the PGA Tour by shoveling hundreds of millions of dollars into their bank accounts.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 30, 2026
That’s probably how you felt when you were shoveling snow as an 8-year-old kid.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 30, 2026
Guys in black slacks, white shirts, and ties are at the table or standing against the wall, shoveling food in their mouths.
From "The Hate U Give" by Angie Thomas
Images released by state media showed Kim shovelling soil alongside other officials at a ceremony attended by an excited crowd clapping and waving North Korean flags.
From Barron's ● Jan. 30, 2026
Miller blasted a long shot toward the Oilers’ net and Lindholm picked it up, kicking the puck to his stick at the bottom of the slot, then shovelling a backhanded shot into the Edmonton net.
From Seattle Times ● May 12, 2024
We saw men cooking on open fires, with elderly women shovelling sand around the bottom of their shacks to stop water getting in.
From BBC ● Jan. 24, 2024
On a sun-scorched shoreline in Iraq's southern marshlands, fishermen stood shovelling a grim catch: tiny fish gathered dead from the water, fit only for use as animal fodder.
From Reuters ● Jun. 5, 2023
We spent most of our time shovelling excrement and rinsing cages and giving feed while Father played the vet.
From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel
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