shanghai

¹ American  

[shang-hahy, shang-hahy] / ˈʃæŋ haɪ, ʃæŋˈhaɪ /

verb (used with object)

Nautical.

shanghaied, shanghaiing

1. to enroll or obtain (a sailor) for the crew of a ship by unscrupulous means, as by force or the use of liquor or drugs.

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Shanghai ² American  

[shang-hahy, shahng-hahy] / ʃæŋˈhaɪ, ˈʃɑŋˈhaɪ /

noun

1. Pinyin, Wade-Giles. a seaport and municipality in E China, near the mouth of the Chang Jiang.

2. a type of long-legged chicken believed to be of Asian origin.

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shanghai ¹ British  

/ ˈʃæŋhaɪ, ʃæŋˈhaɪ /

verb

1. to kidnap (a man or seaman) for enforced service at sea, esp on a merchant ship

2. to force or trick (someone) into doing something, going somewhere, etc

3. to shoot with a catapult

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noun

1. a catapult

Shanghai ² British  

/ ˈʃæŋˈhaɪ /

noun

1. a port in E China, capital of Shanghai municipality (traditionally in SE Jiangsu) near the estuary of the Yangtze: the largest city in China and one of the largest ports in the world; a major cultural and industrial centre, with many universities. Pop: 12 665 000 (2005 est)

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Shanghai Cultural  

1. Largest city in China, located in the eastern part of the country on the Pacific Ocean.

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Discover More

Shanghai is the most populous city in Asia.

Opened to foreign trade by the Treaty of Nanking in 1842, Shanghai became a treaty port administered by Britain, the United States, and France until World War II.

It is one of the world's great seaports.

Etymology

Origin of shanghai

First recorded in 1855–60; after Shanghai

Example Sentences

A schemer and her henchmen shanghai two book salesmen for a diamond safari in Africa.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 27, 2020

Glassy-eyed conductors shanghai hapless passengers from the curb into shuddering minibuses that zigzag through lines of cars, sometimes even jumping up on the sidewalk.

From New York Times • Jul. 15, 2014

Job scouts from cabarets, electronic plants and weaving mills virtually shanghai girl caddies off the golf courses.

From Time Magazine Archive

He wanders into the waterfront dive run by Milly, a "shark" who helps shanghai drunken sailors into freighter crews.

From Time Magazine Archive

Brian had taken such a powerful dislike to Ginger that I realized she must have done something more than shanghai his comic book.

From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls