shimmy
[ shim-ee ]
/ ˈʃɪm i /
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noun, plural shim·mies.
an American ragtime dance marked by shaking of the hips and shoulders.
excessive wobbling in the front wheels of a motor vehicle.
a chemise.
verb (used without object), shim·mied, shim·my·ing.
to dance the shimmy.
to shake, wobble, or vibrate.
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Origin of shimmy
1830–40, for def. 3; 1915–20 for def. 1; back formation and respelling of chemise, construed as a plural
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for shimmy
As she gyrated and shimmied at the VMAs on Sunday night, Taylor Swift did not seem like a person under attack.
In a tucked-in black t-shirt and slacks, the seemingly average Joe shimmied and shaked to the bassline.
Ringo clapped; Yoko flashed peace signs; Steven Tyler tumbled for ya; Beyoncé shimmied; and Katy Perry threw “Roar” punches.
The Grammys Train Wreck: An Insult to Lou Reed, Hip-Hop, and Good Taste|Marlow Stern|January 27, 2014|DAILY BEASTEach in a return splash shimmied the dinghy making for a resurgence of what, until now, had been a barely muted panic.
The Land of Look Behind|Paul Cameron Brown
British Dictionary definitions for shimmy
shimmy
/ (ˈʃɪmɪ) /
noun plural -mies
an American ragtime dance with much shaking of the hips and shoulders
abnormal wobbling motion in a motor vehicle, esp in the front wheels or steering
an informal word for chemise
verb -mies, -mying or -mied (intr)
to dance the shimmy
to vibrate or wobble
Word Origin for shimmy
C19: changed from chemise, mistakenly assumed to be plural
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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