shield
//ˈʃiːld//
Forms
- Plural
- shields
- present (v1)
- shield
- past (v2)
- shielded
- past participle (v3)
- shielded
- present participle
- shielding
- 3rd person singular
- shields
Definitions
1.Anything that protects or defends; defense; shelter; protection.
- Beowulf, behind his shield, thrust forth only his right arm.
- Go muster men. My counsel is my shield; We must be brief when traitors brave the field.
- The shields used by our Norman ancestors were the triangular or heater shield, the target or buckler, the roundel or rondache, and the pavais, pavache, or tallevas.
2.A large expanse of exposed stable Precambrian rock.
3.Parts at the front and back of a vehicle which are meant to absorb the impact of a collision
4.A shape like that of a shield; usually, an inverted triangle with sides that curve inward to form a pointed bottom, commonly used for police identifications and company logos.
- Bespotted as with shields of red and black.
- The chief put something in his hand and Bosch looked down to see the gold detective's shield.
1.To protect, to defend.
- Sunscreen shields against the harmful effects of solar rays.
- Shots rang out and a 15-year-old boy, shielding a woman from the line of fire, was killed.
2.To shelter; to protect oneself.
- The government has updated its guidance for people who are shielding taking into account that COVID-19 disease levels have decreased over the last few weeks.
3.To protect from the influence of.
Frequency
Overall
Rare· #4562
By learning goal
- Everyday conversation
- Rare
- General reading & writing
- Rare
- Academic
- Rare
- Literature
- Rare
Etymology
From Middle English scheld, shelde, from Old English scield (“shield”), from Proto-West Germanic *skeldu, from Proto-Germanic *skelduz (“shield”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kelH- (“cut, split”).
Cognates