shovelful

American  

[shuhv-uhl-fool] / ˈʃʌv əlˌfʊl /

noun

• shovelfuls
  plural

1. the amount held by a shovel.

---

Spelling

See -ful.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• shovelfuls
  plural

Etymology

Origin of shovelful

First recorded in 1525–35; shovel + -ful

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

shovelful shovelfuls

In almost all cases, it came down to inadequate thought and planning before the first shovelful of dirt was turned.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 7, 2023

Silliest thing in the world is standing there throwing a shovelful of dirt at a 80-foot flame, feel like a complete idiot, but enough shovelfuls, you'll put it out.

From Salon ● Aug. 7, 2021

After the pine box was lowered into the grave, Jacob dropped a shovelful of soil onto it, another tradition.

From Washington Times ● Apr. 5, 2020

Siri Russell wiped away tears as she emptied a shovelful of dirt into one of the glass jars.

From Washington Post ● Jul. 7, 2018

Miguel tossed a shovelful of dirt at Finn’s feet.

From "Bone Gap" by Laura Ruby

When fires broke out, flames could engulf an entire train car, forcing Woods to act quickly to contain the blaze with buckets of water and shovelfuls of sand.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 18, 2026

The yellow-vested teams work in areas slated for construction, carefully digging 10 feet or more into hard alluvial soil and pushing shovelfuls of dirt through course-mesh screens to gather the smallest pieces of evidence.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 22, 2023

Rant for not taking a couple of extra shovelfuls of asphalt to fill the big pothole which is literally 2 feet from one of the intersections that were repaved as part of this project.

From Seattle Times ● Jul. 2, 2022

They rose and covered Hussein with pieces of slate, and then the stones with shovelfuls of dirt.

From New York Times ● Aug. 27, 2021

Faro came up and sniffed the first few shovelfuls of earth I turned over.

From "Z for Zachariah" by Robert C. O’Brien