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shingle

1
[ shing-guhl ]
/ ˈʃɪŋ gəl /
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See synonyms for: shingle / shingled / shingling on Thesaurus.com
noun
a thin piece of wood, slate, metal, asbestos, or the like, usually oblong, laid in overlapping rows to cover the roofs and walls of buildings.
a woman's close-cropped haircut.
Informal. a small signboard, especially as hung before a doctor's or lawyer's office.
verb (used with object), shin·gled, shin·gling.
to cover with shingles, as a roof.
to cut (hair) close to the head.
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Idioms about shingle

    hang out one's shingle, Informal. to establish a professional practice, especially in law or medicine; open an office.
    have / be a shingle short, Australian Slang. to be mentally disturbed, mad, or eccentric.

Origin of shingle

1
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English scincle, sc(h)ingle, shyngle, ultimately from Latin scindula, variant of scandula “lath, shingle” (Middle English -g- is unexplained); Latin scindula is due perhaps to association with Greek schíza, schídax “piece of split wood, splinter”

OTHER WORDS FROM shingle

shingler, noun

Words nearby shingle

shindy, shine, shiner, shiner perch, shine up to, shingle, shingle oak, shingles, shingling, shingly, Shingon

Other definitions for shingle (2 of 3)

shingle2
[ shing-guhl ]
/ ˈʃɪŋ gəl /
noun
small, waterworn stones or pebbles such as lie in loose sheets or beds on a beach.
a beach, riverbank, or other area covered with such small pebbles or stones.

Origin of shingle

2
First recorded in 1530–40; apparently variant of earlier chingle; further origin uncertain; but compare North Frisian singel “gravel,” Norwegian singel “small stones”

Other definitions for shingle (3 of 3)

shingle3
[ shing-guhl ]
/ ˈʃɪŋ gəl /
verb (used with object), shin·gled, shin·gling.Metalworking.
to hammer or squeeze (puddled iron) into a bloom or billet, eliminating as much slag as possible; knobble.

Origin of shingle

3
First recorded in 1665–75; from French cingler “to whip, beat,” from German zängeln “to shingle,” derivative of Zange “pincers, pliers”; see also tong
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to shingle

coast, shore, waterfront, affidavit, authentication, authorization, certification, coupon, credential, deed, diploma, documentation, guarantee, license, paper, permit, receipt, ticket, voucher, warrant

How to use shingle in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for shingle (1 of 3)

shingle1
/ (ˈʃɪŋɡəl) /
noun
a thin rectangular tile, esp one made of wood, that is laid with others in overlapping rows to cover a roof or a wall
a woman's short-cropped hairstyle
US and Canadian a small signboard or nameplate fixed outside the office of a doctor, lawyer, etc
a shingle short Australian informal unintelligent or mentally subnormal
verb (tr)
to cover (a roof or a wall) with shingles
to cut (the hair) in a short-cropped style

Derived forms of shingle

shingler, noun

Word Origin for shingle

C12 scingle, from Late Latin scindula a split piece of wood, from Latin scindere to split

British Dictionary definitions for shingle (2 of 3)

shingle2
/ (ˈʃɪŋɡəl) /
noun
coarse gravel, esp the pebbles found on beaches
a place or area strewn with shingle

Derived forms of shingle

shingly, adjective

Word Origin for shingle

C16: of Scandinavian origin; compare Norwegian singl pebbles, Frisian singel gravel

British Dictionary definitions for shingle (3 of 3)

shingle3
/ (ˈʃɪŋɡəl) /
verb
(tr) metallurgy to hammer or squeeze the slag out of (iron) after puddling in the production of wrought iron

Word Origin for shingle

C17: from Old French dialect chingler to whip, from chingle belt, from Latin cingula girdle; see cingulum
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

Other Idioms and Phrases with shingle

shingle

see hang out one's shingle.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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