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shamble
1[ sham-buhl ]
/ ˈʃæm bəl /
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noun
shambles, (used with a singular or plural verb)
- a slaughterhouse.
- any place of carnage.
- any scene of destruction: to turn cities into shambles.
- any scene, place, or thing in disorder: Her desk is a shambles.
British Dialect. a butcher's shop or stall.
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Origin of shamble
1before 900; Middle English shamel,Old English sc(e)amel stool, table <Late Latin scamellum,Latin scamillum, diminutive of Latin scamnum bench; compare German Schemel
Words nearby shamble
Other definitions for shamble (2 of 2)
shamble2
[ sham-buhl ]
/ ˈʃæm bəl /
verb (used without object), sham·bled, sham·bling.
to walk or go awkwardly; shuffle.
noun
a shambling gait.
Origin of shamble
21675–85; perhaps short for shamble-legs one that walks wide (i.e., as if straddling), reminiscent of the legs of a shamble1 (in earlier sense “butcher's table”)
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
How to use shamble in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for shamble
shamble
/ (ˈʃæmbəl) /
verb
(intr) to walk or move along in an awkward or unsteady way
noun
an awkward or unsteady walk
Derived forms of shamble
shambling, adjective, nounWord Origin for shamble
C17: from shamble (adj) ungainly, perhaps from the phrase shamble legs legs resembling those of a meat vendor's table; see shambles
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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