shut

[ shuht ]

/ ʃʌt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR shut ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), shut, shut·ting.

to put (a door, cover, etc.) in position to close or obstruct.

to close the doors of (often followed by up): to shut up a shop for the night.

to close (something) by bringing together or folding its parts: Shut your book. Shut the window!

to confine; enclose: to shut a bird into a cage.

to bar; exclude: They shut him from their circle.

to cause (a factory, school, etc.) to end or suspend operations, services, or business activity: He shut his store, sold his house, and moved away. We're shutting the office for two weeks in June.

to bolt; bar.

verb (used without object), shut, shut·ting.

to become shut or closed; close.

adjective

closed; fastened up: a shut door.

Phonetics. checked(def 2).

noun

the act or time of shutting or closing.

the line where two pieces of welded metal are united.

Verb Phrases

shut down,

to close, especially temporarily; end or suspend operations, services, or business activity.
to stop operating or stop the operation of (a machine): Did you remember to shut down your computer?
Also shut down on/upon.Informal. to hinder; check; stop from doing or saying something: He appeared on the talk show to shut down his critics.
Informal. to defeat or outdo:The team was able to shut down the offense.
to settle over so as to envelop or darken: The fog shut down rapidly.

shut in,

to enclose.
to confine, as from illness: She broke her leg in a fall and has been shut in for several weeks.

shut of, Informal. free of; rid of: He wished he were shut of all his debts.

shut off,

to stop the passage of (water, traffic, electricity, etc.); close off.
to isolate; separate: an outpost almost completely shut off from civilization.

shut out,

to keep from entering; exclude.
to hide from view.
to prevent (an opponent or opposing team) from scoring, as in a game of baseball.

shut up,

to imprison; confine.
to close entirely.
to stop talking; become silent: I thought the neighbors would never shut up and let me sleep.
to stop (someone) from talking; silence.

Nearby words

shunting engine, shunto, shura, shush, shushan, shut up, shut down, shut off, shut one's eyes to, shut out, shut the door

Origin of shut

before 1000; Middle English s(c)hutten, s(c)hetten, s(c)hitten Old English scyttan “to bolt (a door)”; akin to shoot¹

SYNONYMS FOR shut

4 jail, imprison, cage.

5 prohibit.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR shut ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR shut

1 open.

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Related formshalf-shut, adjectivere·shut, verb, re·shut, re·shut·ting.un·shut, adjective

Synonym study

1. See close.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for shut up (1 of 2)

shut up

verb (adverb)

(tr) to prevent all access to

(tr) to confine or imprison

informal to cease to talk or make a noise or cause to cease to talk or make a noise: often used in commands

(intr) (of horses in a race) to cease through exhaustion from maintaining a racing pace

British Dictionary definitions for shut up (2 of 2)

shut

/ (ʃʌt) /

verb shuts, shutting or shut

to move (something) so as to cover an aperture; closeto shut a door

to close (something) by bringing together the partsto shut a book

(tr often foll by up) to close or lock the doors ofto shut up a house

(tr; foll by in, out, etc) to confine, enclose, or excludeto shut a child in a room

(tr) to prevent (a business, etc) from operating

shut one's eyes to to ignore deliberately

shut the door on

to refuse to think about
to render impossible

adjective

closed or fastened

noun

the act or time of shutting

the line along which pieces of metal are welded

get shut of or get shot of slang to get rid of

See also shutdown, shut-off, shutout, shut up

Word Origin for shut

Old English scyttan; related to Old Frisian sketta to shut in, Middle Dutch schutten to obstruct

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

Word Origin and History for shut up (1 of 2)

shut up

c.1400, "keep from view or use," from shut (v.) + up (adv.). Meaning "cause to stop talking" is from 1814; intransitive meaning "cease from speaking" is from 1840.

Word Origin and History for shut up (1 of 2)

shut

Old English scyttan "to put (a bolt) in place so as to fasten a door or gate, bolt, shut to; discharge, pay off," from West Germanic *skutjan (cf. Old Frisian schetta, Middle Dutch schutten "to shut, shut up, obstruct"), from PIE *skeud- "to shoot, chase, throw" (see shoot (v.)). Related: Shutting.

Meaning "to close by folding or bringing together" is from mid-14c. Meaning "prevent ingress and egress" is from mid-14c. Sense of "to set (someone) free (from)" (c.1500) is obsolete except in dialectal phrases such as to get shut of. To shut (one's) mouth "desist from speaking" is recorded from mid-14c.

Idioms and Phrases with shut up (1 of 2)

shut up

Imprison, confine, enclose, as in The dog was shut up in the cellar for the night, or She shut up her memories and never talked about the past. [c. 1400]

Close completely, as in The windows were shut up tightly so no rain came in. [Early 1500s] This usage also occurs in shut up shop, meaning “close the premises of a business,” as in It's late, let's shut up shop now. [Late 1500s] Also see close up, def. 3.

Cause someone to stop speaking, silence someone, as in It's time someone shut him up. [Early 1800s]

Stop speaking, as in I've told you what I think and now I'll shut up. This usage also occurs as a rather rude imperative, as in Shut up! You've said enough. [First half of 1800s]

Idioms and Phrases with shut up (2 of 2)

shut

In addition to the idioms beginning with shut

shut down
shut off
shut one's eyes to
shut out
shut the door
shut up

also see:

close (shut) down
close (shut) one's eyes to
close (shut) the door on
keep one's mouth shut
open and shut case
put up or shut up

shut

verb (used with object), shut, shut·ting.

verb (used without object), shut, shut·ting.

adjective

noun

Verb Phrases

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Nearby words

Origin of shut

Synonym study

British Dictionary definitions for shut up (1 of 2)

shut up

verb (adverb)

British Dictionary definitions for shut up (2 of 2)

shut

verb shuts, shutting or shut

adjective

noun

Word Origin for shut

Word Origin and History for shut up (1 of 2)

shut up

Word Origin and History for shut up (1 of 2)

shut

Idioms and Phrases with shut up (1 of 2)

shut up

Idioms and Phrases with shut up (2 of 2)

shut