Definition of Shovel

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

Specialized synonyms: Hand Shovel, Post-hole Digger, Posthole Digger, Scoop, Scoop Shovel
Generic synonyms: Hand Tool

2. Verb. Dig with or as if with a shovel. "He shovelled in the backyard all afternoon long"
Generic synonyms: Cut Into, Delve, Dig, Turn Over
Also: Shovel In, Shovel In
Derivative terms: Shoveler

3. Noun. The quantity a shovel can hold.
Exact synonyms: Shovelful, Spadeful
Generic synonyms: Containerful

4. Noun. A fire iron consisting of a small shovel used to scoop coals or ashes in a fireplace.
Generic synonyms: Fire Iron

5. Noun. A machine for excavating.
Exact synonyms: Digger, Excavator, Power Shovel
Specialized synonyms: Backhoe, Dredge, Steam Shovel
Generic synonyms: Machine
Derivative terms: Dig, Dig, Excavate

Definition of Shovel

1. n. An implement consisting of a broad scoop, or more or less hollow blade, with a handle, used for lifting and throwing earth, coal, grain, or other loose substances.

2. v. t. To take up and throw with a shovel; as, to shovel earth into a heap, or into a cart, or out of a pit.

Definition of Shovel

1. Noun. A hand tool with a handle, used for moving portions of material such as earth, snow, and grain from one place to another, with some forms also used for digging. Not to be confused with a spade, which is designed solely for small-scale digging and incidental tasks such as chopping of small roots. ¹

2. Noun. (American English) A spade. ¹

3. Verb. To move materials with a shovel. ¹

4. Verb. (transitive figuratively) To move with a shoveling motion. ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Shovel

1. to take up with a shovel (a digging implement) [v -ELED, -ELING, -ELS or -ELLED, -ELLING, -ELS]

Medical Definition of Shovel

1. An implement consisting of a broad scoop, or more or less hollow blade, with a handle, used for lifting and throwing earth, coal, grain, or other loose substances. Shovel hat, a broad-brimmed hat, turned up at the sides, and projecting in front like a shovel, worn by some clergy of the English Church. Shovelspur, a flat, horny process on the tarsus of some toads, used in burrowing. Steam shovel, a machine with a scoop or scoops, operated by a steam engine, for excavating earth, as in making railway cuttings. Origin: OE. Shovele, schovele, AS. Scoft, sceoft; akin to D. Schoffel, G. Schaufel, OHG. Scvala, Dan. Skovl, Sw. Skofvel, skyffel, and to E. Shove. See Shove. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998)

Lexicographical Neighbors of Shovel

shoutouts
shouts
shouts-out
shouts out
shouty
shove
shove-ha'penny
shove-halfpenny
shove-it
shove along
shove ha'penny
shove halfpenny
shove off
shove the queer
shoved
shovel-nosed
shovel-ready
shovel board
shovel hat
shovel in
shovel out
shovel ready
shovel test
shovel tests
shovelard
shovelards
shovelbill
shovelbills
shovelboard

Literary usage of Shovel

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. Modern Street Ballads by John Ashton (1888)
"My shovel and broom, my shovel and broom, She turned up her nose at my shovel and broom. To implore her I fell on my knees, but,by Gemini, She spurned me ..."

2. Modern Street Ballads by John Ashton (1888)
"shovel AND BROOM. THOUGH I'm but a Chimney Sweep I took a ticket To go on one evening to Dusty Tom's room, Who dancing now teaches—he knows how to kick ..."

3. Transactions of the American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical and (1916)
"THE shovel AS IT WAS OPERATED THE FIRST YEAR. and the heavy surges of ... It was finally decided to construct an electro-hydraulic shovel using water under ..."

4. Poetry by Modern Poetry Association (1916)
"THE STEAM-shovel There was an unsightly arm And a cupped hand with three crusted fingers. The hand sank into earth and bulged with it : Then swung aloft in ..."

5. Knight's American Mechanical Dictionary: A Description of Tools, Instruments by Edward Henry Knight (1876)
"The mechanical character of a shovel consists in its adaptation for lifting and throwing loose matter. This is bringing it within closer bounds than is ..."

6. Report of the Secretary of Agriculture by United States Dept. of Agriculture (1863)
"THE DOUBLE shovel PLOUGH. The double shovel plough is an implement only known ... The shovel can be run close to the plant, and thereby save a large amount ..."

7. The Works of William Shakespeare by William Shakespeare, Evangeline Maria O'Connor (1901)
"shovel-boards, broad shillings of Edward VI. used for the game of shove ... shovel-board, long preserved at the Falcon Inn. Sprag = sprack, ie quick; IV. i. ..."

Other Resources:

Search for Shovel on Dictionary.com!Search for Shovel on Thesaurus.com!Search for Shovel on Google!Search for Shovel on Wikipedia!

Search