shoe

[ shoo ]

/ ʃu /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: shoe / shod / shoes / shoeless on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural shoes, (especially British Dialect) shoon

[shoon]. /ʃun/.

an external covering for the human foot, usually of leather and consisting of a more or less stiff or heavy sole and a lighter upper part ending a short distance above, at, or below the ankle.

an object or part resembling a shoe in form, position, or use.

a horseshoe or a similar plate for the hoof of some other animal.

a ferrule or the like, as of iron, for protecting the end of a staff, pole, etc.

brake shoe.

the outer casing of a pneumatic automobile tire.

a drag or skid for a wheel of a vehicle.

a part having a larger area than the end of an object on which it fits, serving to disperse or apply its weight or thrust.

the sliding contact by which an electric car or locomotive takes its current from the third rail.

Civil Engineering.

a member supporting one end of a truss or girder in a bridge.
a hard and sharp foot of a pile or caisson for piercing underlying soil.

a small molding, as a quarter round, closing the angle between a baseboard and a floor.

the outwardly curved portion at the base of a downspout.

a piece of iron or stone, sunk into the ground, against which the leaves of a gateway are shut.

a device on a camera that permits an accessory, as a flashgun, to be attached.

a band of iron on the bottom of the runner of a sleigh.

Cards. dealing box.

Furniture.

a cuplike metal piece for protecting the bottom of a leg.
a fillet beneath an ornamental foot, as a pad or scroll foot.

Printing. a box into which unusable type is thrown.

a chute conveying grain to be ground into flour.

Carpentry. soleplate.

Nautical. a thickness of planking covering the bottom of the keel of a wooden vessel to protect it against rubbing.

verb (used with object), shod or shoed, shod or shoed or shod·den, shoe·ing.

to provide or fit with a shoe or shoes.

to protect or arm at the point, edge, or face with a ferrule, metal plate, or the like.

QUIZ

FIRE UP YOUR VOCAB FOR A "RED" SYNONYMS QUIZ

No fire engine reds here, only a fierce collection of vibrant words for the color red to test yourself on.

Question 1 of 7

What does "amaranth" mean?

a legendary stone of impenetrable hardness

an imaginary, undying flower

a mythical creature

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Meet Grammar Coach

Write or paste your essay, email, or story into Grammar Coach and get grammar help

Improve Your Writing

Meet Grammar CoachImprove Your Writing

Idioms about shoe

drop the other shoe, to complete an action or enterprise already begun.

fill someone's shoes, to take the place and assume the obligations of another person: She felt that no stepmother could ever hope to fill her late mother's shoes.

in someone's shoes, in a position or situation similar to that of another: I wouldn't like to be in his shoes.

the shoe is on the other foot, the circumstances are reversed; a change of places has occurred: Now that we are rich and they are poor the shoe is on the other foot.

where the shoe pinches, the true cause of the trouble or worry.

Origin of shoe

First recorded before 900; (noun) Middle English scho(o), Old English sceō(h), cognate with German Schuh, Old Norse skōr, Gothic skōhs; (verb) Middle English schon, Old English scōg(e)an, cognate with Middle Low German schoi(g)en, Old Norse skūa

OTHER WORDS FROM shoe

shoeless, adjectivere·shoe, verb (used with object), re·shod, re·shoe·ing.un·der·shoe, nounun·shoed, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH shoe

shoe , shoo

Words nearby shoe

shock tube, shockumentary, shock wave, shod, shoddy, shoe, shoebill, shoeblack, shoe boil, shoebox, shoebrush

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use shoe in a sentence

Clarke also posted shots of the ad and the shoe on Instagram.
Louis Vuitton—yes, that Louis Vuitton—has created a pro skate shoe|Marc Bain|August 25, 2020|Quartz
Try raising it and attaching it to the studs, leaving room below for your shoe collection.
Living large in small spaces|Valerie Blake|August 8, 2020|Washington Blade
The theory suggests that when I put myself in your shoes, my brain tries to copy the computations inside your brain.
How the Brain Builds a Sense of Self From the People Around Us|Sam Ereira|July 17, 2020|Singularity Hub
Attached to the sole of a shoe, it stays flat as someone stands.
Shape-shifting cuts give shoes a better grip|Carolyn Wilke|July 14, 2020|Science News For Students

With this information, they can do anything from show us an ad for a pair of shoes we’ll probably like to try to change our minds about which candidate to vote for in an election.
Your Personal Data Is Worth Money. Andrew Yang Wants to Get You Paid|Vanessa Bates Ramirez|June 28, 2020|Singularity Hub
If we begin to see the other as our possession and commodity, our shoe, the shadow of our shadow, is there ever a happy outcome?
Owning Up to Possession’s Downside|Samantha Harvey|December 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They seem to belong to us, and then they freely go—behavior very uncharacteristic of a shadow or a shoe.
Owning Up to Possession’s Downside|Samantha Harvey|December 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
If I say “my shoe,” do I mean it in the same way as “my life,” or “my sister” or “my husband”?
Owning Up to Possession’s Downside|Samantha Harvey|December 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And a perfectly amber whisky might as well taste like an old shoe.
Why Natural Color Is So Crucial To Understanding A Whisky’s Flavors||December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And Christopher Walken warbling and doing a little soft-shoe?
‘Peter Pan Live!’ Review: No Amount of Clapping Brings It to Life|Kevin Fallon|December 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Bondad sua, seor, I'll be sworn there is not one fit to tie the latchet of your shoe in the whole army.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 60, No. 372, October 1846|Various
I should judge from the streets that not more than one-fourth of the females of Galway belong to the shoe-wearing aristocracy.
Glances at Europe|Horace Greeley
The pig-headed prowler I saw, with my pompon missing from his shoe, and his bonne amie wearing the stolen ring.
The Joyous Adventures of Aristide Pujol|William J. Locke
Buckles were first worn as shoe fastenings in the reign of Charles II.
Showell's Dictionary of Birmingham|Thomas T. Harman and Walter Showell
With her little satin shoe she tapped the carpet, biting her under lip and seeming to be listening.
Dope|Sax Rohmer

British Dictionary definitions for shoe

shoe

/ (ʃuː) /

noun

one of a matching pair of coverings shaped to fit the foot, esp one ending below the ankle, having an upper of leather, plastic, etc, on a sole and heel of heavier leather, rubber, or synthetic material
(as modifier)shoe cleaner

anything resembling a shoe in shape, function, position, etc, such as a horseshoe

a band of metal or wood on the bottom of the runner of a sledge

(in baccarat, etc) a boxlike device for holding several packs of cards and allowing the cards to be dispensed singly

a base for the supports of a superstructure of a bridge, roof, etc

a metal collector attached to an electric train that slides along the third rail and picks up power for the motor

engineering a lining to protect from and withstand wearSee brake shoe, pile shoe

be in a person's shoes informal to be in another person's situation

verb shoes, shoeing or shod (tr)

to furnish with shoes

to fit (a horse) with horseshoes

to furnish with a hard cover, such as a metal plate, for protection against friction or bruising

Word Origin for shoe

Old English scōh; related to Old Norse skōr, Gothic skōhs, Old High German scuoh

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 shoe

shoe

In addition to the idiom beginning with shoe

shoe is on the other foot, the

also see:

comfortable as an old shoe
fill someone's shoes
goody-two-shoes
if the shoe fits
in someone's shoes
step into someone's shoes
wait for the other shoe to drop

shoe

Idioms about shoe

Origin of shoe

OTHER WORDS FROM shoe

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH shoe

Words nearby shoe

Words related to shoe

How to use shoe in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for shoe

Word Origin for shoe

Other Idioms and Phrases with shoe