shape

[ sheyp ]

/ ʃeɪp /

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See synonyms for shape on Thesaurus.com

noun

the quality of a distinct object or body in having an external surface or outline of specific form or figure.

this quality as found in some individual object or body form: This lake has a peculiar shape.

something seen in outline, as in silhouette: A vague shape appeared through the mist.

an imaginary form; phantom.

an assumed appearance; guise: an angel in the shape of a woman.

a particular or definite organized form or expression: He could give no shape to his ideas.

proper form; orderly arrangement.

condition or state of repair: The old house was in bad shape. He was sick last year, but is in good shape now.

the collective conditions forming a way of life or mode of existence: What will the shape of the future be?

the figure, physique, or body of a person, especially of a woman: A dancer can keep her shape longer than those of us who have sedentary jobs.

something used to give form, as a mold or a pattern.

Also called section. Building Trades, Metalworking. a flanged metal beam or bar of uniform section, as a channel iron, I-beam, etc.

Nautical. a ball, cone, drum, etc., used as a day signal, singly or in combinations, to designate a vessel at anchor or engaged in some particular operation.

verb (used with object), shaped, shap·ing.

to give definite form, shape, organization, or character to; fashion or form.

to couch or express in words: to shape a statement.

to adjust; adapt: He shaped everything to suit his taste.

to direct (one's course, future, etc.).

to file the teeth of (a saw) to uniform width after jointing.

Animal Behavior, Psychology. to teach (a desired behavior) to a human or other animal by successively rewarding the actions that more and more closely approximate that behavior.

Obsolete. to appoint; decree.

verb (used without object), shaped, shap·ing.

to come to a desired conclusion or take place in a specified way: If discussions shape properly, the companies will merge.

Verb Phrases

shape up,

to assume a specific form: The plan is beginning to shape up.
to evolve or develop, especially favorably.
to improve one's behavior or performance to meet a required standard.
to get oneself into good physical condition.
(of longshoremen) to get into a line or formation in order to be assigned the day's work.

OTHER WORDS FOR shape

1 silhouette, appearance.

4 specter, illusion.

7 order, pattern.

8 order, situation.

14 mold, model.

See synonyms for shape on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

ALL IN FAVO(U)R OF THIS BRITISH VS. AMERICAN ENGLISH QUIZ

There's an ocean of difference between the way people speak English in the US vs. the UK. Are your language skills up to the task of telling the difference? Let's find out!

Question 1 of 7

True or false? British English and American English are only different when it comes to slang words.

true

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Idioms about shape

take shape, to assume a fixed form; become definite: The house is beginning to take shape.

Origin of shape

First recorded before 900; (noun) Middle English; Old English gesceapu (plural); replacing dialectal shap, Middle English; Old English gesceap (singular); cognate with Old Norse skap “state, mood”; (verb) Middle English; Old English sceapen (past participle); replacing Middle English sheppe, shippe, Old English sceppan, scyppan; cognate with German schaffen, Old Norse skepja, Gothic -skapjan “to make”

synonym study for shape

1. See form.

OTHER WORDS FROM shape

shap·a·ble, shape·a·ble, adjectiveoutshape, verb (used with object), out·shaped, out·shap·ing.pre·shape, noun, verb (used with object), pre·shaped, pre·shap·ing.trans·shape, verb (used with object), trans·shaped, trans·shap·ing.

un·shap·a·ble, adjectiveun·shape·a·ble, adjectiveun·shap·ing, adjective

Words nearby shape

shanty, shantytown, Shanxi, Shaoxing, Shaoyang, shape, shaped, shaped charge, shapeless, shapely, shapen

Other definitions for shape (2 of 2)

SHAPE

or Shape

[ sheyp ]

/ ʃeɪp /

noun

Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers, Europe.

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

How to use shape in a sentence

A chrome-plated steel nib writes smoothly and holds its shape for years.
No-fuss fountain pens that make your note taking and letter writing more elegant|PopSci Commerce Team|September 15, 2020|Popular-Science
We quickly realized that indexing problems come in all possible shapes and sizes.
How to earn your place in Google’s index in 2020|Bartosz Góralewicz|September 14, 2020|Search Engine Land
It is only connected to the collection of shapes and sounds that make up the word tree because we have all agreed that it is.
The true love story in Elif Batuman’s The Idiot is a love affair with language|Constance Grady|September 11, 2020|Vox
One of Howell’s own studies, she and her team reported online in August in mSphere, suggests that fungal species in particular shape the metabolites — and thus aroma and flavor — in wine from different growing regions in Australia.
How does a crop’s environment shape a food’s smell and taste?|Carolyn Beans|September 10, 2020|Science News

I think it helped us connect, not to compare struggles, they’re all different, but to connect with a lot of different people who are in that struggle for belonging in some way, shape or form.
Pete Buttigieg Says Dems Did Not Coordinate to Seal Biden’s Primary Win|Nick Fouriezos|September 9, 2020|Ozy
I mean, physically, mentally, you know, in every way, shape, and form.
I Tried to Warn You About Sleazy Billionaire Jeffrey Epstein in 2003|Vicky Ward|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
“Under Suleimani several military branches have taken shape [in Iraq] which are run by Iran and the Iranian military,” he said.
What an Iranian Funeral Tells Us About the Wars in Iraq|IranWire|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
“You were going to work your way into my marriage and you were going to call its new three-way shape holy” the narrator recounts.
A Novel Nearly Impossible to Review|Nicholas Mancusi|December 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
If you drink from a flute, do so from a tulip-shape one to concentrate the notes, Simonetti-Bryan says.
Champagne: You’re Drinking It All Wrong|Kayleigh Kulp|December 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The Babadook is the shape of grief: all-enveloping, shape-shifting, black, here intensely, terrifying, then gone.
Grief: The Real Monster in The Babadook|Tim Teeman|December 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They are ovoid in shape, and lie in pairs, end to end, often forming short chains.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis|James Campbell Todd
Leaves of a lanceolate form are the largest, and the shape of those found on most varieties of the American plant.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
Microscopically, they are yellow or reddish-brown crystals, which differ greatly in size and shape.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis|James Campbell Todd
Here the Goat, who evidently was not yet quite started, inquired, "Must all the halves be of the same shape?"
Davy and The Goblin|Charles E. Carryl
He was Honour's self, till he brought the serpent to his bosom, in the shape of his perfidious son.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter

British Dictionary definitions for shape (1 of 2)

shape

/ (ʃeɪp) /

noun

the outward form of an object defined by outline

the figure or outline of the body of a person

a phantom

organized or definite formmy plans are taking shape

the form that anything assumes; guise

something used to provide or define form; pattern; mould

condition or state of efficiencyto be in good shape

out of shape

in bad physical condition
bent, twisted, or deformed

take shape to assume a definite form

verb

(when intr, often foll by into or up) to receive or cause to receive shape or form

(tr) to mould into a particular pattern or form; modify

(tr) to plan, devise, or prepareto shape a plan of action

an obsolete word for appoint

Derived forms of shape

shapable or shapeable, adjectiveshaper, noun

Word Origin for shape

Old English gesceap, literally: that which is created, from scieppan to create; related to sceap sexual organs, Old Norse skap destiny, Old High German scaf form

British Dictionary definitions for shape (2 of 2)

SHAPE

/ (ʃeɪp) /

n acronym for

Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with shape

shape

In addition to the idiom beginning with shape

shape up

also see:

bent out of shape
in condition (shape)
lick into shape
take shape

shape

OTHER WORDS FOR shape

Idioms about shape

Origin of shape

synonym study for shape

OTHER WORDS FROM shape

Words nearby shape

Other definitions for shape (2 of 2)

or Shape

Words related to shape

How to use shape in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for shape (1 of 2)

Derived forms of shape

Word Origin for shape

British Dictionary definitions for shape (2 of 2)

Other Idioms and Phrases with shape