shift
To move from one place to anotherTo move from one place to another; to redistribute.
Recorded UK: Speaker: Vealhurl Recorder: Vealhurl, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons · Recorded US: K6ka, CC0, Wikimedia Commons
» Tom shifted gears.
Tom wechselte die Gänge. — Felixjp
Tom wechselte die Gangart. — Felixjp
Том перейшов на іншу передачу. — deniko
CK · Tatoeba · CC BY 2.0 FRTranslations
8 languagesBy meaning 4
By meaning 2
Examples
346 sentencesMeaning
20 senses(figuratively, sometimes, transitive)To move from one place to another; to redistribute.
We'll have to shift these boxes to the downtown office.
verschieben, verlagern, verstellen
перемеща́тьperemeščátʹ, перемести́тьperemestítʹ, дви́гатьdvígatʹ
move and exchange for another
(figuratively, intransitive, reflexive, sometimes)To change position; to move.
She shifted slightly in her seat.
His political stance shifted daily.
перемеща́тьсяperemeščátʹsja, перемести́тьсяperemestítʹsja, дви́гатьсяdvígatʹsja
change place or direction
(ergative, figuratively)To change in form or character; switch.
меня́тьmenjátʹ, поменя́тьpomenjátʹ, изменя́тьizmenjátʹ
More meanings 17
(intransitive)To change gears (in an automobile).
I crested the hill and shifted into fifth.
umschalten
переключа́тьpereključátʹ, переключи́тьpereključítʹ
change gears
(India, intransitive)To change residence; to leave and live elsewhere.
We are shifting to America next month.
(transitive)To manipulate a binary number by moving all of its digits left or right; compare rotate.
Shifting 1001 to the left yields 10010; shifting it right yields 100.
(transitive)To dispose of, remove.
How can I shift a grass stain?
(intransitive)To hurry; to move quickly.
If you shift, you might make the 2:19.
(intransitive)To use meditation or other means to change the reality that one's consciousness resides in.
I finally shifted to Hogwarts last night!
To move the keys of a typewriter over in order to type capital letters or special characters.
To switch to a character entry mode for capital letters or special characters.
(transitive)To remove (the first value from an array).
Origin
The verb is from Middle English schiften, from Old English sċiftan (“to divide, separate iThe verb is from Middle English schiften, from Old English sċiftan (“to divide, separate into shares; appoint, ordain; arrange, organise”), from Proto-West Germanic *skiftijan, from Proto-Germanic *skiftijaną, *skiptijaną, from earlier *skipatjaną (“to organise, put in order”), from Proto-Indo-European *skeyb- (“to separate, divide, part”), from Proto-Indo-European *skey- (“to cut, divide, separate, part”). Cognate with Scots schift, skift (“to shift”), West Frisian skifte, skiftsje (“to sort”), Dutch schiften (“to sort, screen, winnow, part”), Low German schichten (“to stack, layer”), German schichten (“to stack, layer”), Swedish skifta (“to shift, change, exchange, vary”), Norwegian skifte (“to shift”), Icelandic skipta (“to switch”). See ship.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
shifts, shifting, shifted, shiftedTenses
shift · shifted · will shift · have shiftedPhrasal verbs
4 phrasal verbs- shift inTo introduce or activate a new configuration, algorithm, or processing step into a running system or workflow.
- shift aboutTo vacillate.
- shift offTo delay; to defer; to put off; to lay aside.
- shift outTo switch from a primary character set to an alternate (e.g. graphic) character set on a device.
Synonyms
83 synonymsAntonyms
1 antonymsWord family
31 related wordsLessons for this word
3 lessons- B1Work and jobs — Because the lesson uses it
- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.