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shut

verb · adjective · noun

Simple meaning

To close, in different senses.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

shuht
US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈʃʌt

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

verb

  1. transitiveintransitive

    To close, in various senses.

  2. transitiveintransitive

    To remove or block an opening, gap or passage through.

  3. transitiveintransitive

    To make or become unreceptive.

  4. transitive

    To put out of use or operation.

  5. transitiveintransitivechiefly british

    To close (a business or venue) temporarily or permanently.

  6. Become closed

adjective

  1. Closed, not open, in any of various senses.

  2. Physically sealed, obstructed, folded together, etc.

  3. Not available for use or operation.

  4. of a business or venue

    Not operating or conducting trade; not allowing entrance to visitors or the public.

  5. Not receptive.

noun

  1. The line or place where two pieces of metal are welded together.

  2. The act or time of shutting; close.

  3. A door or cover; a shutter.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
A2 · Elementary (estimated)
Frequency
Common
Typical Use
Everyday English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: To close, in various senses.

Used this way, shut is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
No strong connotation
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

mouth shutdoor shuteyes shutshut behind

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Inflected forms

Grammatical variations of the same word.

  • shutternounInflected form

    A mechanical device on a camera that opens and closes to control the time of a photographic exposure.

  • shuttingnounInflected form

    The act of closing something.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • shutting postnounCompound term

    The gatepost against which the gate closes.

  • shut awayverbCompound term

    Place in a place where something cannot be removed or someone cannot escape.

  • shut downverbCompound term

    Cease to operate or cause to cease operating.

  • shut-eyenounCompound term

    Informal term for sleep.

  • shut-innounCompound term

    Someone who is incapacitated by a chronic illness or injury.

  • shut offverbCompound term

    Stem the flow of.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

Sense: to close or in various senses

close

Antonyms

Sense: to close or in various senses

open

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.