shin
noun
the front part of the leg from the knee to the ankle.
shin
1 American
[shin]
/ ʃɪn /
noun
-
the front part of the leg from the knee to the ankle.
-
the lower part of the foreleg in cattle.
-
the shinbone or tibia, especially its sharp edge or front portion.
-
Chiefly British. a cut of beef similar to the U.S. shank, usually cut into small pieces for stewing.
verb (used with or without object)
-
shins,
present (3rd person singular)
-
shinned,
past participle, past
-
shinning
present participle
shin
2
American
[sheen, shin]
/ ʃin, ʃɪn /
noun
-
the 21st letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
-
the consonant sound represented by this letter.
shīn
3
American
[sheen]
/ ʃin /
noun
Shin
4
American
[shin, sheen]
/ ʃɪn, ʃin /
noun
Buddhism.
shin
1
British
/ ʃɪn /
noun
-
the front part of the lower leg
-
the front edge of the tibia
-
a cut of beef, the lower foreleg
verb
-
to climb (a pole, tree, etc) by gripping with the hands or arms and the legs and hauling oneself up
-
(tr) to kick (a person) in the shins
shin
2
British
/ ʃɪn /
noun
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
shinsimple
-
shinssimple
-
have shinnedperfect
-
has shinnedperfect
-
am shinningprogressive
-
are shinningprogressive
-
is shinningprogressive
-
have been shinningperfect progressive
-
has been shinningperfect progressive
Past
-
shinnedsimple
-
had shinnedperfect
-
was shinningprogressive
-
were shinningprogressive
-
had been shinningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of shin1
before 1000; Middle English shine, Old English scinu; cognate with Dutch scheen, German Schien ( bein )
Origin of shin2
1895–1900; < Hebrew shīn, akin to shēn tooth
Origin of shīn3
From Arabic
Origin of Shin4
1895–1900; < Japanese: literally, faith < Middle Chinese, equivalent to Chinese zhēn truth
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Milwaukee Brewers: Huntington Beach Marina High product Jake Bauers has suffered from shin splints almost all season, and the pain has kept him from playing the outfield lately.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026
Gay has three half-centuries in his first summer as a Test cricketer, though being pinned on the shin by Abbas left his average below 25.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
One had a festering cut on his shin that he said he got from a fall on the rocks near the beach.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
V was joined by his bandmate Jungkook, who talked about a shin injury he has been dealing with during the tour, saying he was "on the verge of developing a stress fracture".
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
The one on his shin throbbed and pulsed, even when he wasn’t moving, so he focused on it.
From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro
Also in the pool, Japanese swimmer Shin Ohashi, himself only 17, smashed the men's 200m breaststroke world record to delight the home crowd.
From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026
“It falls into a gray zone,” said Shin, who is now secretary-general of the Korea Defense Forum, a think tank based in Seoul.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026
For Shin, having multiple income streams is a natural Gen Z response to a shifting world.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026
Shin balances her safe-haven portfolio with extra cash flow from her side job as a fitness instructor.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026
It placed Shin and Park within a stone’s throw of the fence that ran along the spine of the mountain.
From "Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West" by Blaine Harden
“If you would have,” Dolly replied, “it would have been something very natural, but I would have probably kicked you in the shins or something.”
From Salon ● Aug. 26, 2026
The stickler, or referee, has to make sure that shins are kicked before a fall can count.
From BBC ● May 30, 2026
The first time I saw the U.S. and Canadian women play each other live, it felt as if someone had taken a standard hockey game, given it six espressos, and kicked it in the shins.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 17, 2026
There was also the afternoon I took a shortcut through some trees and got stuck in snow up to my shins.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 25, 2026
Gagging on the stench, he smeared his feet, shins and hands.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
And the 37-year-old settled the game when he shinned Lamine Yamal's header across goal and past his own keeper.
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2023
Clucas' effort took a deflection off the boot of Moussa Sissoko and flew into the corner, while Tymon shinned a first-time cross over Elliot's head.
From BBC ● Sep. 21, 2021
“See, it’s not difficult,” Mr. Violini, a restoration specialist at the Vatican Museums, said as he slowly shinned up the frescoed stairwell leading up to a once-private papal chapel in Rome.
From New York Times ● Apr. 10, 2019
Out went Geoff Cameron, whose shinned clearance had gifted Nani the opening goal against Portugal, and whose drop in concentration was a contributing factor, but certainly not the sole cause, in the second.
From The Guardian ● Jun. 27, 2014
I twisted them off and shinned back down.
From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo
As it was, it took two set-pieces break down the visitors, with Hofmann shinning a volley through a crowded penalty area after the initial ball in was not cleared.
From BBC ● Apr. 11, 2024
The 16-year-old was signed in December after shinning in Tacoma Defiance matches last year.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 17, 2022
"All love on my end shawty, Keep shinning!"
From Fox News ● Feb. 22, 2021
I experienced Ustvolskaya’s magnificent chords and resonances as heat and light, while that shinning orb overhead became a giant gong.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2018
I fancy even our borrowed uniforms would not allay suspicion if the Turks spotted us shinning up the wall.
From The Fight for Constantinople A Story of the Gallipoli Peninsula by Percy F. (Percy Francis) Westerman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
