shave

[sheyv]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR shave ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object), shaved, shaved or (especially in combination) shav·en, shav·ing.

to remove a growth of beard with a razor.

verb (used with object), shaved, shaved or (especially in combination) shav·en, shav·ing.

to remove hair from (the face, legs, etc.) by cutting it off close to the skin with a razor.

to cut off (hair, especially the beard) close to the skin with a razor (often followed by off or away).

to cut or scrape away the surface of with a sharp-edged tool: to shave hides in preparing leather.

to reduce to shavings or thin slices: to shave wood.

to cut or trim closely: to shave a lawn.

to scrape, graze, or come very near to: The car just shaved the garage door.

Commerce. to purchase (a note) at a rate of discount greater than is legal or customary.

to reduce or deduct from: The store shaved the price of winter suits in the spring.

noun

the act, process, or an instance of shaving or being shaved.

a thin slice; a shaving.

any of various tools for shaving, scraping, removing thin slices, etc.

Origin of shave

before 900; (v.) Middle English schaven, schafen, Old English sc(e)afan; cognate with Dutch schaven to plane (a plank), abrade (the skin), Low German schaven, German schaben, Old Norse skafa to scrape, Gothic skaban to shear, shave; (noun) Middle English schave tool for shaving, Old English sc(e)afa, derivative of the v.

Related formsshav·a·ble, shave·a·ble, adjectivere·shave, verb re·shaved, re·shav·ing.un·shav·a·ble, adjectiveun·shave·a·ble, adjectiveun·shaved, adjectivewell-shaved, adjective

Synonyms for shave

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR shave ON THESAURUS.COM

7. brush, glance, touch.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for shave

trim, pare, kiss, shred, skim, brush, slash, shear, prune, cut, peel, clip, strip, decorticate, crop, graze, plane, barber, skin, touch

Examples from the Web for shave

Contemporary Examples of shave

The only time they asked me to do something was grow my hair so they could shave it in that one scene.
‘Boyhood’ Star Ellar Coltrane: An Astonishing Debut 12 Years in the Making
Kevin Fallon
July 11, 2014
There is a big difference between imagining not shaving and actually trying to not shave.
Meet the Professor of Hairy Studies
Lizzie Crocker
July 9, 2014
According to Fahs, the “labor intensive” assignment “gives men some insight into what women who shave go through.”
Meet the Professor of Hairy Studies
Lizzie Crocker
July 9, 2014
Budgets are out of control because government executives lack flexibility to shave here and there to make ends meet.
Government Has Made America Inept
Philip K. Howard
May 4, 2014
Tipitina's in the warm blue fog, squatting beneath a crescent moon so sharp and clean you could shave a wild hog with it.
The Stacks: The Neville Brothers Stake Their Claim as Bards of the Bayou
John Ed Bradley
April 27, 2014

Historical Examples of shave

After I got home I did not shave for two days, and scarcely ever spoke.
Tales And Novels, Volume 4 (of 10)
Maria Edgeworth
Being here, I may as well have a shave, and get trimmed close.'
Life And Adventures Of Martin Chuzzlewit
Charles Dickens
All right—and I'll profit by the opportunity to have a shave.
The Three Cities Trilogy, Complete
Emile Zola
I could see him a little better, if he'd shave himself, and get his hair cut.'
Life And Adventures Of Martin Chuzzlewit
Charles Dickens
No shower, no shave, no quiet dinner, no walk; all that would have to come later.
The Second Voice
Mann Rubin

British Dictionary definitions for shave

shave

verb shaves, shaving, shaved, shaved or shaven (mainly tr)

(also intr) to remove (the beard, hair, etc) from (the face, head, or body) by scraping the skin with a razor

to cut or trim very closely

to reduce to shavings

to remove thin slices from (wood, etc) with a sharp cutting tool; plane or pare

to touch or graze in passing

informal to reduce (a price) by a slight amount

US commerce to purchase (a commercial paper) at a greater rate of discount than is customary or legal

noun

the act or an instance of shaving

any tool for scraping

a thin slice or shaving

an instance of barely touching something

close shave informal a narrow escape

Derived Formsshavable or shaveable, adjective

Word Origin for shave

Old English sceafan; related to Old Norse skafa, Gothic skaban to shave, Latin scabere to scrape

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

Word Origin and History for shave

Old English sceafan (strong verb, past tense scof, past participle scafen), "to scrape, shave, polish," from Proto-Germanic *skaban (cf. Old Norse skafa, Middle Dutch scaven, German schaben, Gothic skaban "scratch, shave, scrape"), from PIE *skabh-, collateral form of root *(s)kep- "to cut, to scrape, to hack" (see scabies). Related: Shaved; shaving. Original strong verb status is preserved in past tense form shaven. Specifically in reference to cutting the hair close from mid-13c. Figurative sense of "to strip (someone) of money or possessions" is attested from late 14c.

c.1600, "something shaved off;" from shave (v.); Old English sceafa meant "tool for shaving." Meaning "operation of shaving" is from 1838. Meaning "a grazing touch" is recorded from 1834. Phrase a close shave is from 1856, on notion of "a slight, grazing touch."

Idioms and Phrases with shave

shave

see close call (shave).