shallow

[ shal-oh ]

/ ˈʃæl oʊ /

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See synonyms for: shallow / shallower / shallows / shallowness on Thesaurus.com

adjective, shal·low·er, shal·low·est.

of little depth; not deep: shallow water.

lacking depth; superficial: a mind that is not narrow but shallow.

taking in a relatively small amount of air in each inhalation: shallow breathing.

Baseball. relatively close to home plate: The shortstop caught the pop fly in shallow left field.

noun

Usually shallows. (used with a singular or plural verb) a shallow part of a body of water; shoal.

adverb

Baseball. at a shallow position: With the pitcher up, the outfielders played shallow.

verb (used with or without object)

to make or become shallow.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of shallow

1350–1400; Middle English schalowe (adj.); akin to Old English sceald shallow (see shoal¹)

OTHER WORDS FROM shallow

shal·low·ly, adverbshal·low·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use shallow in a sentence

They look dark green in 2001, light green in 2005, as the sea grew shallower, and this year they are all but gone.
The Aral Sea's Disappearing Act|Anna Nemtsova|October 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“Megalodon fossils appear in shallower marine sediments,” Balk said.
Shark Week Is Lying Again: Megalodon Is Definitely Extinct|David Shiffman|August 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Hertli also is considering creating lower-price items for those with shallower pockets but gilded aspirations.
Lingerie for the 1 Percent|CNBC|August 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Using fictional characters, Brooks describes a generation that has “a sense that they are shallower than they need to be.”
This Week's Best Journalism|The Daily Beast|January 15, 2011|DAILY BEAST

The cumulative effect, he argues, is to make the counterculture seem shallower than it actually was.
The Best of Brit Lit|Peter Stothard|March 11, 2010|DAILY BEAST
The swirl of the current swept him into the shallower stream below.
The Highgrader|William MacLeod Raine
It may be crossed either close to the sea-shore, or at a shallower spot not far distant.
The Caravan Route between Egypt and Syria|Ludwig Salvator
And the waters which gush forth are increasing in volume; the stream does not become shallower but deepens in its flow.
The Prophet Ezekiel|Arno C. Gaebelein
Here she let go and slowly shoved her foot ahead of her until she felt the water getting shallower as she proceeded toward shore.
Five Little Starrs in the Canadian Forest|Lillian Elizabeth Roy
Our tacks suddenly began to grow longer, and the depths, which I registered, shallower.
The Riddle of the Sands|Erskine Childers

British Dictionary definitions for shallow

shallow

/ (ˈʃæləʊ) /

adjective

having little depth

lacking intellectual or mental depth or subtlety; superficial

noun

(often plural) a shallow place in a body of water; shoal

verb

to make or become shallow

Derived forms of shallow

shallowly, adverbshallowness, noun

Word Origin for shallow

C15: related to Old English sceald shallow; see shoal 1

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

shallow

Origin of shallow

OTHER WORDS FROM shallow

Words related to shallow

How to use shallow in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for shallow

Derived forms of shallow

Word Origin for shallow