shallow
Americanadjective
-
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
adverb
verb (used with or without object)
-
shallows,
present (3rd person singular)
-
shallowed,
past participle, past
-
shallowing
present participle
adjective
-
having little depth
-
lacking intellectual or mental depth or subtlety; superficial
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
shallowsimple
-
shallowssimple
-
have shallowedperfect
-
has shallowedperfect
-
am shallowingprogressive
-
are shallowingprogressive
-
is shallowingprogressive
-
have been shallowingperfect progressive
-
has been shallowingperfect progressive
Past
-
shallowedsimple
-
had shallowedperfect
-
was shallowingprogressive
-
were shallowingprogressive
-
had been shallowingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of shallow
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English schalowe (adjective); akin to Old English sceald “shallow” ( see shoal 1)
Explanation
The adjective shallow can describe things that aren't very deep, like a shallow puddle, or people who don't have much emotional or intellectual depth, like shallow people who judge others on their looks and how much money they have. Shallow likely comes from the Old English word sceald, which means "shoal," the water near a shoreline. So, shallow describes something that is close to the surface — like the shallow roots of a newly-planted tree or a person whose interest in someone or something isn't very deep. For instance, a shallow person might go to the opening of a new art exhibition not so much to see the artworks as meet the wealthy people on the museum's board of trustees.
Vocabulary lists containing shallow
Face It: Selfie Vocab
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Words from Shakespearean Insults
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Workshop 2, Part 1
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
"A mesophotic coral ecosystem lives deeper than the usual shallow coral reefs, in zones where light is much more limited," explained Zinzindohoué.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 15, 2026
The improvements will include a new boardwalk across muddy parts of the park, litter-picking and the creation of shallow wetland habitats.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
Snell had cruised through the first two innings, a Texas leaguer into shallow right field the only blemish on an otherwise perfect beginning.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 29, 2026
The shallow can never quite be tender, only sentimental.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
Finally he did sleep, a shallow doze filled with nightmares.
From "Rowan of Rin" by Emily Rodda
However, small growers often have shallower wells that are more vulnerable to going dry when water levels drop.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
"This suggests a fairly shallow eruption vent -- much shallower than what's implied by the existing bathymetry, which shows water depths of several hundred meters or more."
From Science Daily ● Jul. 10, 2026
As life gradually expanded from deeper waters into shallower marine environments, conditions became much more challenging.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 10, 2026
It only makes economic sense in certain places, primarily the western part of the U.S., where hot rock can be found in shallower surfaces.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 23, 2026
The strait between Siberia’s Chukotsky Peninsula and Alaska’s Seward Peninsula is now only 56 miles wide and about 120 feet deep, shallower than many lakes.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Currently, surveys are limited to very restricted spots, but with the help of these advanced underwater drones, scientists can extend their research from the shallowest regions to depths of 60 meters and beyond.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 15, 2024
Though residential investment, which includes homebuilding, likely contracted for the ninth straight quarter, the decline was probably the shallowest in 1-1/2 years.
From Reuters ● Jul. 27, 2023
They are faux bullies with no heart, only a head for the fight and no care for anything but the shallowest of victories.
From Salon ● Jul. 28, 2022
It’s a shame that, despite a few charming moments that show some depth, the film only offers the shallowest of dips into the ocean that is modern queer culture.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 3, 2022
The moon was hidden somewhere behind the blinding glare, and it felt like the city itself was collapsing, pressing in, taking only the shallowest of breaths in the squeeze of lost space.
From "All American Boys" by Jason Reynolds
Divers tied stone weights around their ankles and held their breath as they sank to the bottom of the shallows.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
A few children splashed in the shallows as the surfers paddled out to sea, fighting the crashing waves.
From Barron's ● Jun. 22, 2026
Evie first saw the pale axolotl nestled in the rocks after lifting up a discarded mat in the shallows of the River Ogmore.
From BBC ● Apr. 23, 2026
They frequent the shallows surrounding Friday Harbor Labs, the UW research facility located on San Juan Island.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2025
He was in the shallows below the rapids, caught up in a small alcove in the shoreline.
From "The River" by Gary Paulsen
Once again, the sea shallowed, and fish shimmied between crags, sea urchins perched on ridges and starfish danced on the side of the island.
From The Guardian ● Jan. 6, 2017
Instead of descending directly into the mantle, the subducting plate shallowed out and moved eastward beneath the continental plate affecting the overlying continent hundreds of miles east of the continental margin and building high mountains.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2017
That shows I've shallowed the path of my driver from the top to impact.
From Golf Digest ● Aug. 7, 2016
“Be a good boy,” my mother said with a shallowed voice before closing the door behind her, leaving us alone.
From Salon ● Mar. 5, 2013
The pool had been narrowed by half and shallowed to a depth of ten feet in the series of explosions Sears had detonated until the river gave up the rent carcass of the monstrous reptile.
From Terry A Tale of the Hill People by Charles Goff Thomson
The researchers cite as one example the Bangkok basin in Thailand, where groundwater levels fell in the late-twentieth century before shallowing out in the early 21at Century.
From Salon ● Jan. 24, 2024
Instead, the fish have been forced to lay their eggs at the base of Shasta Lake in the shallowing Sacramento River.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 19, 2022
Other times, I get too steep with my swing. and I can't get the ball to do what I want, so I work on shallowing my angle of attack.
From Golf Digest ● Mar. 19, 2019
But the shallowing seawater in the Baltic Sea is not the only thing worrying people in the area, says Knutsson.
From Slate ● Aug. 7, 2017
She could feel the dream shallowing, like a sleek ship beaching on a shoal.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
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.
