Library / English Dictionary

SHOVEL

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected forms: shovelled    , shovelling   

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A machine for excavating

Synonyms:

digger; excavator; power shovel; shovel

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("shovel" is a kind of...):

machine (any mechanical or electrical device that transmits or modifies energy to perform or assist in the performance of human tasks)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "shovel"):

backhoe (an excavator whose shovel bucket is attached to a hinged boom and is drawn backward to move earth)

dredge (a power shovel to remove material from a channel or riverbed)

steam shovel (a power shovel that is driven by steam)

Derivation:

shovel (dig with or as if with a shovel)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A hand tool for lifting loose material; consists of a curved container or scoop and a handle

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("shovel" is a kind of...):

hand tool (a tool used with workers' hands)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "shovel"):

hand shovel (a shovel that is operated by hand)

post-hole digger; posthole digger (a shovel used to sink postholes)

scoop; scoop shovel (the shovel or bucket of a dredge or backhoe)

Derivation:

shovel (dig with or as if with a shovel)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A fire iron consisting of a small shovel used to scoop coals or ashes in a fireplace

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("shovel" is a kind of...):

fire iron (metal fireside implements)

Derivation:

shovel (dig with or as if with a shovel)

Sense 4

Meaning:

The quantity a shovel can hold

Synonyms:

shovel; shovelful; spadeful

Classified under:

Nouns denoting quantities and units of measure

Hypernyms ("shovel" is a kind of...):

containerful (the quantity that a container will hold)

Derivation:

shovel (dig with or as if with a shovel)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Dig with or as if with a shovel

Example:

he shovelled in the backyard all afternoon long

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "shovel" is one way to...):

cut into; delve; dig; turn over (turn up, loosen, or remove earth)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s something PP

Also:

shovel in (eat a large amount of food quickly)

shovel in (earn large sums of money)

Derivation:

shovel (a machine for excavating)

shovel (a hand tool for lifting loose material; consists of a curved container or scoop and a handle)

shovel (a fire iron consisting of a small shovel used to scoop coals or ashes in a fireplace)

shovel (the quantity a shovel can hold)

shoveler (a worker who shovels)

Credits

 Context examples: 

At home the small peasant gradually launched out; he built a beautiful house, and the peasants said: The small peasant has certainly been to the place where golden snow falls, and people carry the gold home in shovels.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

There was no lethal weapon at hand, but I seized a shovel which the workmen had been using to fill the cases, and lifting it high, struck, with the edge downward, at the hateful face.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

What in the world are you going to do now, Jo? asked Meg one snowy afternoon, as her sister came tramping through the hall, in rubber boots, old sack, and hood, with a broom in one hand and a shovel in the other.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

This they shovelled out, and then built a fresh fire.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

The shovel fell from my hand across the box, and as I pulled it away the flange of the blade caught the edge of the lid which fell over again, and hid the horrid thing from my sight.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

That's it! said Jo to herself, when she at length discovered that genuine good will toward one's fellow men could beautify and dignify even a stout German teacher, who shoveled in his dinner, darned his own socks, and was burdened with the name of Bhaer.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)