shut
Americanverb (used with object)
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shuts,
present (3rd person singular)
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shut,
past participle, past
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shutting
present participle
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to put (a door, cover, etc.) in position to close or obstruct.
- Antonyms:
- open
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to close the doors of (often followed byup ).
to shut up a shop for the night.
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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.
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to bar; exclude.
They shut him from their circle.
- Synonyms:
- prohibit
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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.
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to bolt; bar.
verb (used without object)
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shuts,
present (3rd person singular)
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shut,
past participle, past
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shutting
present participle
adjective
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closed; fastened up.
a shut door.
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Phonetics. checked.
noun
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the act or time of shutting or closing.
-
the line where two pieces of welded metal are united.
verb phrase
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shut off
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to stop the passage of (water, traffic, electricity, etc.); close off.
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to isolate; separate.
an outpost almost completely shut off from civilization.
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shut in
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to enclose.
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to confine, as from illness.
She broke her leg in a fall and has been shut in for several weeks.
-
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shut up
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to imprison; confine.
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to close entirely.
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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.
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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!
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shut down
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to close, especially temporarily; end or suspend operations, services, or business activity.
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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.
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Informal. to defeat or outdo.
The team was able to shut down the offense.
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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.
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to hide from view.
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to prevent (an opponent or opposing team) from scoring, as in a game of baseball.
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verb
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to move (something) so as to cover an aperture; close
to shut a door
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to close (something) by bringing together the parts
to shut a book
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to close or lock the doors of
to shut up a house
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(tr; foll by in, out, etc) to confine, enclose, or exclude
to shut a child in a room
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(tr) to prevent (a business, etc) from operating
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to ignore deliberately
-
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to refuse to think about
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to render impossible
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adjective
noun
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the act or time of shutting
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the line along which pieces of metal are welded
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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
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am shuttingprogressive
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are shuttingprogressive
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is shuttingprogressive
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have been shuttingperfect progressive
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has been shuttingperfect progressive
Past
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shutsimple
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had shutperfect
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was shuttingprogressive
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were shuttingprogressive
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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:
But, for all the blessings of a two-way superhero, the Dodgers can’t shut him down entirely, at least not until he gets his swing right.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026
However, some businesses have publicly claimed that they've been shut over minor violations, without warning or a chance to improve first.
From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026
The plan is for Rushing to shut down swinging for a few days, Roberts said, and then restart a hitting progression that, this time, will include a rehab assignment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026
The Trump Store Manchester shut its doors recently, citing weak sales and high operating expenses due to increased rent and advertising costs, according to an employee.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026
His eyes are shut, but the enormous scar on his forehead is clear.
From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman
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
Misuse of therapy speak, or the casual use of clinical psychology terms, is a pervasive problem, and one that therapists note actually shuts down communication, as opposed to improving it.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 18, 2026
Production can be detected within just a few hours after an injury, but it shuts down again after roughly three days.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 14, 2026
The pink-haired girl nods, drops the fancy wooden Do Not Disturb sign onto the doorknob, then shuts the door.
From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston
Ohtani’s planned buildup from tossing live batting practice on Aug. 22, to preparing to possibly start a little more than a week later, instead ended with the Dodgers shutting him down from throwing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2026
In 2020, she was among a cross-section of public figures who signed an open letter denouncing cancel culture, saying it weakens open debate by shutting people down.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
On Wednesday, Uber said it was shutting down its business in Nigeria and Uganda, after leaving Tanzania earlier this year.
From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026
This is roughly equivalent to stopping an overflowing bathtub by shutting off the water to the entire apartment building because you cannot get to the faucet.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026
Oliver, who was used to the Internet shutting off at inconvenient times, jumped up.
From "The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street" by Karina Yan Glaser
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
