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
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
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has shoveledperfect
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has shovelledperfect
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am shovelingprogressive
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am shovellingprogressive
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are shovelingprogressive
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are shovellingprogressive
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is shovelingprogressive
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is shovellingprogressive
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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
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shovelledsimple
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had shoveledperfect
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had shovelledperfect
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was shovelingprogressive
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was shovellingprogressive
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were shovelingprogressive
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were shovellingprogressive
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had been shovelingperfect progressive
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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:
Wood thinks it’s also worth noting that the pick and shovel stocks are getting their earnings from the capex boom upfront.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 10, 2026
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
In the film’s short teaser, Cruise — donning an Ethan Hunt-esque hair and makeup transformation — moves balletically while carrying a shovel.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 10, 2026
When they got to their yard, they went directly to the sandbox where Sam's big tin shovel was lying beside a dented kitchen pot.
From "All About Sam" by Lois Lowry
A growing sense of fatigue with the artificial intelligence trade and the related arms race is prompting one strategist to advise that investors stick with the so-called picks and shovels rather than the spenders.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 10, 2026
At the disaster sites, hundreds of national guardsmen and police stood idly by clutching their rifles and manning checkpoints, leaving residents to wonder why they weren’t grabbing shovels to help find survivors.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026
“It mostly came down to using shovels and buckets and hands, things like that,” Espy said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 5, 2026
On Sunday, a group of residents ordered a group of soldiers to pick up picks and shovels and join in the rescue efforts.
From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026
I ask weakly, once I’m finally relieved of duty, as his assistant shovels equipment back into a black leather bag.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
Every so often he bent over and paused, looking like a man who’d just shoveled out his car.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 30, 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
His defense led to the offensive highlight of the third as he stole a pass and shoveled the ball to Jaxson Hayes in transition.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 14, 2025
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
The conversation ceased as the two of them shoveled food into their mouths.
From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro
The mud in the pit is sifted and shovelled.
From BBC ● Jun. 3, 2026
He said residents had shovelled the stones and gravel to make barriers along with the sandbags to protect their homes.
From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2025
The United Arab Emirates' commercial centre, Dubai has shovelled resources into social and business reforms and sectors like digital technology.
From Reuters ● Jun. 19, 2023
"I'm planning to share it with my family and friends," the investment expert said, as cinema workers shovelled the popcorn into buckets and boxes.
From Reuters ● Nov. 28, 2022
Or was it all thrown away, shovelled into dustpans?
From "Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier
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
His days on the railroad involved long hours shoveling coal into the furnaces that fed locomotive steam engines.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 18, 2026
This exciting nutrition system may include fun things like nearly blinding your boss with direct sunlight at an open-air business lunch, or shoveling food in your face from 5:10 to 5:11 p.m.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 1, 2026
When I was 8 years old, I was shoveling sidewalks.
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
In areas where the floods have subsided, residents have started shovelling mud out of their homes.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2023
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
The man looked both ways as if to make sure the coast was clear, then stepped outside into the freezing cold and started shovelling his way down the pavement.
From "The Marvels" by Brian Selznick
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.
