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  • shin
    shin
    noun
    the front part of the leg from the knee to the ankle.
  • shīn
    shīn
    noun
    the 13th letter of the Arabic alphabet.
  • Shin
    Shin
    noun
    a Japanese offshoot of the Pure Land Sect, requiring only faith in Amida for salvation through his accumulated merit.
Synonyms

shin

1 American  
[shin] / ʃɪn /

noun

  1. the front part of the leg from the knee to the ankle.

  2. the lower part of the foreleg in cattle.

  3. the shinbone or tibia, especially its sharp edge or front portion.

  4. 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)

shinned, shinning

  1. to climb by holding fast with the hands or arms and legs and drawing oneself up.

shin 2 American  
[sheen, shin] / ʃin, ʃɪn /

noun

  1. the 21st letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

  2. the consonant sound represented by this letter.

shīn 3 American  
[sheen] / ʃin /

noun

  1. the 13th letter of the Arabic alphabet.

Shin 4 American  
[shin, sheen] / ʃɪn, ʃin /

noun

Buddhism.

  1. a Japanese offshoot of the Pure Land Sect, requiring only faith in Amida for salvation through his accumulated merit.

shin 1 British  
/ ʃɪn /

noun

  1. the front part of the lower leg

  2. the front edge of the tibia

  3. a cut of beef, the lower foreleg

"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

verb

  1. to climb (a pole, tree, etc) by gripping with the hands or arms and the legs and hauling oneself up

  2. (tr) to kick (a person) in the shins

"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
shin 2 British  
/ ʃɪn /

noun

  1. the 21st letter in the Hebrew alphabet (ש), transliterated as sh

"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

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.

It is the kind of place where you can lose an hour just looking at shin guards.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 14, 2026

Elsewhere, Arsenal winger Beth Mead fractured her shin so is out but Chloe Kelly made her return at the end of January and is available for selection.

From BBC • Feb. 16, 2026

The ACL, which connects the shin bone to the femur, is a main stabilizing force in the knee and protects the lower leg from sliding forward.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 7, 2026

Researchers sampled a tibia, or shin bone, which is not commonly used for ancient DNA studies.

From Science Daily • Jan. 26, 2026

I shove the tray aside before I remember that I don’t have a shin.

From "The Running Dream" by Wendelin Van Draanen

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.