shore
2[ shawr, shohr ]
/ ʃɔr, ʃoʊr /
noun
a supporting post or beam with auxiliary members, especially one placed obliquely against the side of a building, a ship in drydock, or the like; prop; strut.
verb (used with object), shored, shor·ing.
to support by or as if by a shore or shores; prop (usually followed by up): to shore up a roof; government subsidies to shore up falling corn prices.
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Nearby words
shoptalk, shopwalker, shopwindow, shopworn, shoran, shore, shore bird, shore bug, shore crab, shore dinner, shore fly
Origin of shore
21300–50; (noun) Middle English; cognate with Middle Low German, Middle Dutch schore prop; (v.) shoren, derivative of the noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
British Dictionary definitions for shore up (1 of 3)
shore
1/ (ʃɔː) /
noun
the land along the edge of a sea, lake, or wide riverRelated adjective: littoral
- land, as opposed to water (esp in the phrase on shore)
- (as modifier)shore duty
law the tract of coastland lying between the ordinary marks of high and low water
(often plural) a countryhis native shores
verb
(tr) to move or drag (a boat) onto a shore
Word Origin for shore
C14: probably from Middle Low German, Middle Dutch schōre; compare Old High German scorra cliff; see shear
British Dictionary definitions for shore up (2 of 3)
shore
2/ (ʃɔː) /
noun
a prop, post, or beam used to support a wall, building, ship in dry dock, etc
verb
(tr often foll by up) to prop or make safe with or as if with a shore
Derived Formsshoring, noun
Word Origin for shore
C15: from Middle Dutch schōre; related to Old Norse skortha prop
British Dictionary definitions for shore up (3 of 3)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Idioms and Phrases with shore up
shore up
Support, prop, as in The new law was designed to shore up banks in danger of failure. This expression derives from the noun shore, meaning “prop,” a beam or timber propped against a structure to provide support. The verb shore dates from 1340 and was first recorded in a figurative context in 1581.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
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