shield

[ sheeld ]

/ ʃild /

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See synonyms for: shield / shielded / shielding / shields on Thesaurus.com

noun

a broad piece of armor, varying widely in form and size, carried apart from the body, usually on the left arm, as a defense against swords, lances, arrows, etc.

a similar device, often of lightweight plastic, used by riot police to protect themselves from rocks and other thrown objects.

something shaped like a shield, variously round, octagonal, triangular, or somewhat heart-shaped.

a person or thing that protects.

a police officer's, detective's, or sheriff's badge.

Ordnance. a steel screen attached to a gun to protect its crew, mechanism, etc.

Mining. a movable framework for protecting a miner from cave-ins, etc.

Electricity. a covering, usually made of metal, placed around an electric device or circuit in order to reduce the effects of external electric and magnetic fields.

Zoology. a protective plate or the like on the body of an animal, as a scute, enlarged scale, etc.

dress shield.

Heraldry. an escutcheon, especially one broad at the top and pointed at the bottom, for displaying armorial bearings.

Shield, Astronomy. the constellation Scutum.

Also called continental shield .Geology. a vast area of ancient crustal rocks which, together with a platform, constitutes a craton.

a protective barrier against nuclear radiation, especially a lead or concrete structure around a reactor.

verb (used with object)

to protect (someone or something) with or as if with a shield.

to serve as a protection for.

to hide or conceal; protect by hiding.

Obsolete. to avert; forbid.

verb (used without object)

to act or serve as a shield.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of shield

First recorded before 900; (noun) Middle English shelde, Old English sceld; cognate with Dutch, German Schild, Gothic skildus; (verb) Middle English shelden, Old English sceldan, scildan, derivative of the noun

OTHER WORDS FROM shield

shielder, nounshieldless, adjectiveshield·less·ly, adverbshield·less·ness, noun

shieldlike, adjectiveun·der·shield, nounun·shield·ed, adjectiveun·shield·ing, adjective

Words nearby shield

shicker, shickered, shidduch, shied, shiel, shield, shield back, shield bearer, shield bug, shield cricket, shield fern

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

How to use shield in a sentence

Because ozone is both a chemical by-product of oxygen produced in photosynthesis and a shield that protects life from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays, astronomers think atmospheric ozone could be a key indicator that a distant world is habitable.
Hubble watched a lunar eclipse to see Earth from an alien’s perspective|Maria Temming|August 17, 2020|Science News
Louis’s sudden education began just as governments across the world started treating the looming shortage of masks and face shields as a matter of national security.
Unmade in America|Tate Ryan-Mosley|August 14, 2020|MIT Technology Review
Hundreds of thousands of masks, gloves, face shields and hand sanitizer bottles will be on hand to protect them.
Five Ways the November Election Could Be Odder Than Ever|Randy Dotinga|July 13, 2020|Voice of San Diego
Little things such as adding complimentary masks, face shields, gloves, and hand sanitizers to Independence Day deals will show consumers that you care about them.
Ecommerce marketing this Independence Day will be tricky: Four must dos|Evelyn Johnson|June 23, 2020|Search Engine Watch

Her current company, Therma-Tron-X, had already started to make face shields for a local hospital.
Tackling the novel coronavirus calls for novel ideas|Kathiann Kowalski|May 7, 2020|Science News For Students
He remains busy trying to penetrate the shield with something much smarter.
A Gift to the Jihadis: The Unseen Airport Security Threat|Clive Irving|December 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Liu was also well aware of the risks that came with the shield.
In The Shadow of Murdered Cops|Michael Daly|December 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The daily message of that outsized shield to Ramos was that just wearing the NYPD inform can make you a target.
In The Shadow of Murdered Cops|Michael Daly|December 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He tended to shield himself from disappointment by expecting the worst—of people and of his country.
How Richard Pryor Beat Bill Cosby and Transformed America|David Yaffe, Scott Saul|December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
UPDATE: "My firm has done nothing to shield anyone or any entity from any sanctions," Goldin told The Daily Beast in an email.
Exclusive: Did This Manhattan Firm Help Shield a Russian Fund From Sanctions?|Bill Conroy|November 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
There is a companion who condoleth with his friend for his belly's sake, and he will take up a shield against the enemy.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various
The sailors had hoped they would be able to shield the Southern point of the Peninsula by interposing their ships but they can't.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton
I should judge from what I see and feel that shade is seldom wanting here, except as a shield from the rain.
Glances at Europe|Horace Greeley
Prepare the table, behold in the watchtower them that eat and drink: arise, ye princes, take up the shield.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various
And Elam took the quiver, the chariot of the horseman, and the shield was taken down from the wall.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various

British Dictionary definitions for shield

shield

/ (ʃiːld) /

noun

any protection used to intercept blows, missiles, etc, such as a tough piece of armour carried on the arm

any similar protective device

Also called: scutcheon, escutcheon heraldry a pointed stylized shield used for displaying armorial bearings

anything that resembles a shield in shape, such as a prize in a sports competition

the protective outer covering of an animal, such as the shell of a turtle

physics a structure of concrete, lead, etc, placed around a nuclear reactor or other source of radiation in order to prevent the escape of radiation

a broad stable plateau of ancient Precambrian rocks forming the rigid nucleus of a particular continentSee Baltic Shield, Canadian Shield

short for dress shield

civil engineering a hollow steel cylinder that protects men driving a circular tunnel through loose, soft, or water-bearing ground

the shield informal

Australian short for the Sheffield Shield
NZ short for the Ranfurly Shield

verb

(tr) to protect, hide, or conceal (something) from danger or harm

Derived forms of shield

shielder, nounshieldlike, adjective

Word Origin for shield

Old English scield; related to Old Norse skjöldr, Gothic skildus, Old High German scilt shield, Old English sciell shell

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

Scientific definitions for shield

shield

[ shēld ]

A wall or housing of an absorbing material, such as concrete or lead, built around a nuclear reactor to prevent the escape of radiation.

A structure or arrangement of metal plates or mesh designed to protect a piece of electronic equipment from electrostatic or magnetic interference.

A large geographic area where rocks of a continent's craton (the ancient, relatively undisturbed portion of a continental plate) are visible at the surface. A shield is often surrounded by platforms covered with sediment.

shield

Origin of shield

OTHER WORDS FROM shield

Words nearby shield

Words related to shield

How to use shield in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for shield

Derived forms of shield

Word Origin for shield

Scientific definitions for shield