on the shelf
Idioms-
Inactive, not employed, as in With mandatory retirement at 65, many useful employees are put on the shelf . [Second half of 1500s]
-
In a state of disuse, as in We'll have to put her proposal on the shelf until we have more funds . [Late 1800s]
-
Without prospects of marriage. For example, After she broke her third engagement, her parents were sure she'd be on the shelf . This usage is always said of a woman and today considered offensive. It is probably obsolescent. [Early 1800s] All these usages allude to an article left on the shelf of a store, bookcase, or the like.
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 thought was that you have to have packaging that, when it’s on the shelf, people will purchase it without knowing anything about the product,” Hirsch said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 4, 2026
Digital labels can also help ensure the price on the shelf matches the price at checkout.
From Salon ● Nov. 2, 2026
"Luckily, there's an experimental drug sitting on the shelf that's already been shown to be safe in humans," said Saltiel.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 1, 2026
When Henderson walked into the shed that day, a weird, white, papier-mâché creature on the shelf caught his eye.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026
They were up there on the shelf in Mama’s chifforobe with things happening to them, whereas Granny wasn’t anywhere.
From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
