shut
Americanverb (used with object)
-
shuts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
shut,
past participle, past
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shutting
present participle
-
to put (a door, cover, etc.) in position to close or obstruct.
- Antonyms:
- open
-
to close the doors of (often followed byup ).
to shut up a shop for the night.
-
to close (something) by bringing together or folding its parts.
Shut your book. Shut the window!
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to confine; enclose.
to shut a bird into a cage.
-
to bar; exclude.
They shut him from their circle.
- Synonyms:
- prohibit
-
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)
-
shuts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
shut,
past participle, past
-
shutting
present participle
adjective
-
closed; fastened up.
a shut door.
-
Phonetics. checked.
noun
-
the act or time of shutting or closing.
-
the line where two pieces of welded metal are united.
verb phrase
-
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 in
-
to enclose.
-
to confine, as from illness.
She broke her leg in a fall and has been shut in for several weeks.
-
-
shut up
-
to imprison; confine.
-
to close entirely.
-
Informal. to stop talking; become silent (often used as a rude command).
Just sit down and shut up! I thought the neighbors would never shut up and let me sleep.
-
Informal. to stop (someone) from talking; silence.
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Informal. (used to express disbelief or astonishment).
You dated her in high school? Shut up!
-
-
shut down
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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?
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Informal. Also shut down onupon 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 a place so as to envelop or darken it.
The fog shut down rapidly.
-
-
shut of free of; rid of.
He wished he were shut of all his debts.
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shut out
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to keep from entering; exclude.
-
to hide from view.
-
to prevent (an opponent or opposing team) from scoring, as in a game of baseball.
-
verb
-
to move (something) so as to cover an aperture; close
to shut a door
-
to close (something) by bringing together the parts
to shut a book
-
to close or lock the doors of
to shut up a house
-
(tr; foll by in, out, etc) to confine, enclose, or exclude
to shut a child in a room
-
(tr) to prevent (a business, etc) from operating
-
to ignore deliberately
-
-
to refuse to think about
-
to render impossible
-
adjective
noun
-
the act or time of shutting
-
the line along which pieces of metal are welded
-
slang to get rid of
Synonym Usage
See close.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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shutsimple
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shutssimple
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have shutperfect
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has shutperfect
-
am shuttingprogressive
-
are shuttingprogressive
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is shuttingprogressive
-
have been shuttingperfect progressive
-
has been shuttingperfect progressive
Past
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shutsimple
-
had shutperfect
-
was shuttingprogressive
-
were shuttingprogressive
-
had been shuttingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of shut
First recorded before 1000; Middle English s(c)hutten, s(c)hetten, s(c)hitten Old English scyttan “to bolt (a door)”; akin to shoot 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Broadcasters and sporting bodies have been working hard to shut off illegal online streams.
From BBC ● Oct. 18, 2026
Instead, when the war started and Iran shut the Strait of Hormuz, Liu’s trades went bad as price moves cut against him.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
After years of planning, California transportation officials are preparing to shut down the Vincent Thomas Bridge on Nov. 7 to replace its deck.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
His reaction, he added, was that “it’s impressive — shut up and take my money.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 15, 2026
We left Marlene shut in there, helping herself busily to the hay, and rumbling with pleasure.
From "An Elephant in the Garden" by Michael Morpurgo
In healthy immune cells, BCL6 attaches to DNA and temporarily shuts down genes that would normally stop cell growth or initiate cell death.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 8, 2026
The justices could decide it's too early to hear the case, rule narrowly without touching the Vermont and New York laws -- or make a broad ruling that shuts the doors on them.
From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026
The sport will wait for updates, but the likelihood is he shuts it down from here.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026
On Nyepi, the island's airport shuts down and internet access is cut.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
The three of them are looking at me in surprise, and then the door shuts behind me.
From "The Light in Hidden Places" by Sharon Cameron
Postnatal depression: 'I felt like my brain was shutting down'
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
Insha Rahman, president of Vera, said both the Covid-19 pandemic and the previous administration of mayor Eric Adams produced delays in shutting down Rikers.
From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026
Instead of simply shutting down a cancer-promoting protein, the scientists designed a small molecule that connects it to another protein capable of activating the cell's built-in death program.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 8, 2026
Marvel Unlimited, the company’s digital comics subscription service, is shutting down after 19 years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
American mobsters hated Castro for shutting down the casinos they’d been running in Cuba.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
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