/ʃɛlvz/. Forms: Middle English schelf(f)e, Middle English–1600s shelfe, 1600s shealfe, Middle English– shelf; plural Middle English– shelves, (Middle English schelves, schelvys, 1500s sylwes); Middle English schelfes, Middle English–1600s shelfes, Middle English–1700s shelfs.shelfn.1
/ʃɛlf/, U.S. /ʃɛlf//ʃɛlvz/. Forms: Middle English schelf(f)e, Middle English–1600s shelfe, 1600s shealfe, Middle English– shelf; plural Middle English– shelves, (Middle English schelves, schelvys, 1500s sylwes); Middle English schelfes, Middle English–1600s shelfes, Middle English–1700s shelfs. I. A horizontal support, and related uses.† 2. A cupboard or cabinet. Obsolete.
1.
a. A slab of wood (or other material) fixed in a horizontal position to a wall, or in a frame, to hold books, vessels, ornaments, etc.; one of the transverse boards in a bookcase, cabinet, or the like.
ΘΚΠ
society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > a building > furniture and fittings > stand > [noun] > shelf
skelf1396
shelfc1405
tack1446
binkc1520
bank1574
bracket1635
hanging shelf1726
wall-plat1841
pluteus1895
c1405 (c1390) G. Chaucer Miller's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 25 His Augrym stones layen faire a part On shelues [v.r. schelfes] couched at his beddes heed.
1422 in J. Raine Vol. Eng. Misc. N. Counties Eng. (1890) 16 Yat the lede pype and the shelfs be the wyfe's of Symond of Stele.
1485 in H. Littlehales Medieval Rec. London City Church (1905) 28 In the Bottrye iiij schelves.
1505 in Eng. Gilds (1870) 327 Yn the spence a tabell planke and ij sylwes.
1566 in E. Peacock Eng. Church Furnit. (1866) 65 A shelf for to set dishes on.
?1615 G. Chapman tr. Homer Odysses (new ed.) ix. 313 Shelues [ταρσοί] with cheeses heapt.
1716 A. Pope Further Acct. E. Curll 21 Have not I cloath'd you in double Royal, lodg'd you handsomely on decent Shelves..?
1719 D. Defoe Life Robinson Crusoe 135 I was full two and forty Days making me a Board for a long Shelf.
1765 J. Brown Christian Jrnl. 252 Here is the famed surgeon's shop: no doubt his shelfs are planted with pots, vials, and boxes full of useful medicine.
1842 Ld. Tennyson Talking Oak xxx, in Poems (new ed.) II. 71 She left the novel half-uncut Upon the rosewood shelf.
1856 ‘E. S. Delamer’ Flower Garden 34 A dry airy shelf is a good place for keeping them [sc. bulbs].
1898 G. B. Shaw You never can Tell iii. (stage direct.) The bamboo tea table, with folding shelves.
b. The gradine of an altar.
ΘΚΠ
society > faith > artefacts > division of building (general) > altar > parts of altar > [noun] > gradine
shelf1496
retablo1772
retable1817
superaltar1847
predella1859
retabulum1860
gradin1877
gradino1883
1496–7 in H. Littlehales Medieval Rec. London City Church (1905) 30 A frontell for the schelffe standyng on the alter.
c. transferred. A shelf with reference to its contents; the contents of a shelf (esp. of books).
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > book > receptacle for books > [noun] > book-shelf
shelf1732
open shelf1821
book trough1893
1732 G. Berkeley Alciphron I. ii. xxiv. 141 You may confute a whole shelf of School-men.
1799 Monthly Rev. 30 287 This performance cannot be placed on the same shelf with that of Barthelemy.
1818 W. Scott Heart of Mid-Lothian vi, in Tales of my Landlord 2nd Ser. III. 147 His works had no place on David Deans's shelf of divinity.
1825 T. B. Macaulay Milton in Edinb. Rev. Aug. 305 A few more days, and this Essay will follow the Defensio Populi to the dust and silence of the upper shelf.
1876 J. R. Lowell Ode 4th July iv. ii Herein they were great Beyond the incredulous lawgivers of yore, And wiser than the wisdom of the shelf.
d. fig. phrases. on the shelf:
(a) On one side, out of the way, in a position or state of inactivity or uselessness; esp. to lay (put, etc.) on the shelf, also †to set on shelf.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > inaction > in a state of inactivity [phrase] > out of action
out of order1530
out of commission1533
on the shelfa1577
out of action1703
out of blast1832
the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > disadvantage > uselessness > non-use > not in use [phrase] > disused
out of ure1553
on the shelfa1577
a1577 G. Gascoigne Princelie Pleasures Kenelworth sig. C.ij in Whole Wks. (1587) Ioue in heauen would smile to see Diana set on shelfe.
1815 Duke of Wellington Dispatches (1838) XII. 379 Alava would then be laid upon the shelf, if he had not his situation here to return to.
1816 ‘Quiz’ Grand Master viii. 8 He's ever since been on the shelf.
1831 J. W. Croker in J. Boswell Life Johnson I. 118 (note) [Quoting J. W. Croker, an. 1740] His friend General Oglethorpe, who, after acquittal by a court-martial, was (to use a vulgar but expressive phrase) put upon the shelf.
1884 L. J. Jennings in Croker Papers I. vi. 170 The question of Parliamentary Reform could not be perpetually kept upon the shelf.
1893 B. Harraden Ships that Pass i. vii Because your career has been checked, and because you have been put on the shelf.
(b) Of women: without prospects of marrying.
ΘΚΠ
society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > marriage or wedlock > fitness for marriage > [adverb] > without prospects of marrying
on the shelf1839
society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > marriage or wedlock > unmarried person(s) > unmarried woman > [adverb] > without prospect of marrying
on the shelf1839
1839 T. Hood I'm not Single Man v Mamma, who praises her own self, Instead of Jane or Ann, And lays ‘her girls’ upon the shelf.
1847 J. O. Halliwell Dict. Archaic & Provinc. Words II On the shelf, said of ladies when too old to get married.
1893 Academy 25 Nov. 460/3 A worn-out flirt who has run through her chances in the matrimonial market and who is..on the shelf.
(c) slang. In pawn.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > financial dealings > borrowing money > borrow money [phrase] > in pawn
at pawn1431
in pop1819
in (occasionally the) hock1859
on the shelf1859
1859 J. C. Hotten Dict. Slang 91 On the shelf, pawned.
e. off the shelf: from a supply of ready-made goods. Also (with hyphens) as adj.phr.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > undertaking > preparation > [adjective] > prepared or ready > made ready > ready or in a finished state
ready-made1653
off the shelf1966
1936 Industr. & Engin. Chem. Feb. 150/2 The individual customer must generally have his material fabricated to his order and cannot obtain material [aluminium] ‘off the shelf’.
1958 Engineering 11 Apr. 455/2 Using sets built to a standard pattern which would be available ‘off the shelf’ and made up of interchangeable parts.
1962 J. Glenn in J. Glenn et al. Into Orbit 37 They had to use ‘off-the-shelf’ items in order to save time.
1966 Electronics 17 Oct. 38 The fact that its roll in a normal ocean is only 1° means that off-the-shelf, land-rated equipment can be used.
1971 Engineering Apr. 88 (advt.) No chance of errors and ‘off-the-shelf’ service.
1978 Nature 26 Oct. 784/1 As CAMAC equipment is often sold as individual products to system builders, items are often available either ‘off the shelf’.
ΘΚΠ
society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > a building > furniture and fittings > cupboard or cabinet > [noun]
aumbry1356
shelfc1440
armoryc1485
cupboard1530
armoire1571
amberc1625
tabern1657
dark-closet1726
almirah1788
cwtch1890
bahuta1916
muurkas1949
c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 445/1 Schelfe, epiaster, epilocarium, armarium.
1570 P. Levens Manipulus Vocabulorum sig. Eiiv/1 A Shelfe, cortinale.
3.
a. Printing. = till n.1 3.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > printing > printing machine or press > parts of printers or presses > [noun] > platen > space between platen projections
shelf1706
till1888
1706 Phillips's New World of Words (new ed.) Shelf,..the Till of a Printing-Press.
1808 C. Stower Printer's Gram. 328 The Till or Shelf.
1845 Encycl. Metrop. VIII. 774 The third bar D, called the shelf or till, is intended to guide and keep steady..the hose, which contains the spindle and screw.
b. Shipbuilding. A timber on the inner side of the frame to support the deck-beams.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > parts of vessels > body of vessel > [noun] > timbers of hull > other timbers supporting beams
pointer1750
shelf-piece1830
shelf1845
beam-arm1850
fork-beam1850
hold-stanchion1867
1845 Encycl. Metrop. VI. 396/2 Under the beams of the deck, perpendicularly over the builge-strake, was fixed on its edge a strake of fir along the whole length of the vessel six inches thick, with a score one inch deep for the beams, to which it was bolted, and was called the longitudinal shelf.
1874 S. J. P. Thearle Naval Archit. (new ed.) I. 35 The several pieces composing the shelf are connected with vertical flat scarphs.
c. The charging-bed of a furnace.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > equipment > furnace or kiln > furnace > parts of furnace > [noun] > hearth or floor of furnace
hearth1551
sole1615
laboratory1790
hearth bottom1821
mouth plate1852
open-hearth1870
shelf1879
kitchen1881
1879 Spons' Encycl. Manuf. I. 290 The hopper in which the charge of sulphate, coal, and chalk is contained, is built into the arch over the centre of the ‘shelf’.
4. A police informer. Australian slang.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > information > informing on or against > [noun] > informer > police informer
setter1630
nose1789
mouchard1802
rat1818
stool-pigeon1830
knark1851
police informer1851
nark1859
telegraph1864
copper1885
sarbut1897
Noah's Ark1898
stool1906
snout1910
finger1914
policeman1923
stoolie1924
shelf1926
grass1929
grasshopper1937
grasser1950
stukach1969
supergrass1975
1926 ‘J. Doone’ Timely Tips for New Australians Gloss. Shelf, a slang word denoting an informer.
1952 People (Austral.) 3 Dec. 8/2 The jail authorities knew such trafficking went on and often set traps for the warders through the good offices of shelfs or trusties (prisoners who were informers).
II. Senses influenced by shelf n.2
5.
a. A ledge, platform, or terrace of land, rock, etc.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > land > landscape > high land > ledge or terrace > [noun]
shelvea1701
ledge1732
terrace1753
bench1791
lynchet1797
shelf1807
benching1809
offset1856
cultivation terrace1863
terracing1863
mantelshelf1897
cultivation-bank1913
mantelpiece1920
terracette1922
berm1931
1807 J. Barlow Columbiad iii. 101 Torrents of molten rocks..Lead o'er the shelves of ice their fiery tide.
1818 W. Scott Heart of Mid-Lothian xiii, in Tales of my Landlord 2nd Ser. IV. 296 A huge fragment of stone, which, having fallen from the cliffs above, had..jammed so as to serve for a sloping roof to the farther part of the broad shelf or platform on which they stood.
1833 C. Lyell Princ. Geol. III. 131 These roads or shelves occur in a valley six or seven miles wide.
1872 W. Black Strange Adventures Phaeton xxiv Scrambling up shelves of loose earth and slate.
b. continental shelf, the relatively shallow belt of sea-bottom bordering a continental mass, the outer edge of which sinks rapidly to the deep ocean-floor. Also unqualified (frequently attributive).
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > water > sea or ocean > region of sea or ocean > [noun] > continental shelf
continental shelf1892
1892 H. R. Mill Realm of Nature xi. 201 In many cases it is possible that the continental shelf is the end of a low plain submerged by subsidence; in others a low plain may be an upheaved continental shelf.
1905 Times 29 Mar. 10/6 The coast platform and Continental shelf lying off the Norwegian coast.
1913 Jrnl. Geol. (Chicago) 21 525 The mode of formation keeps the face of the shelf within a certain distance from the sea-surface.
1913 Jrnl. Geol. (Chicago) 21 525 The shelf zone is..a biologic horizon of the first importance.
1934 C. R. Longwell et al. Outl. Physical Geol. vii. 125 The shelf beyond the long-quiescent Atlantic coast of North America is 60 to 80 miles wide off the Carolinas.
1964 Oceanogr. & Marine Biol. 2 61 The temperature minimum at 150m may be formed, in part, by mixing of winter Bering Sea water with shelf water.
1978 Friedman & Sanders Princ. Sedimentol. xii. 360/2 (caption) Shelf lagoon between margin of a continental block and a reef tract that is situated at the edge of the continental mass.
6. Mining and Geology. Bed-rock: see quots.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > structure of the earth > constituent materials > rock > [noun] > bedrock
shelf1671
stone-head1708
rock1719
rock bed1794
rock-bottom1797
rock-head1820
bed-rock1850
reef1869
the world > the earth > minerals > mineral deposits > features of stratum or vein > [noun] > bed rock
shelf1671
reef1869
1671 Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 6 2096 The uppermost surface of Mineral Veins or hoads..which is termed by the Miners, the Shelf, Fast Countrey or Ground that was never moved in the Flood.
1839 H. T. De la Beche Rep. Geol. Cornwall xiii. 398 We find these pebbles at the base of the whole, resting upon the subjacent rock, commonly termed the shelf.
1852 Nicolay in Man. Geog. Sci. i. 420 Low rocks lying horizontally, especially when laminated, are called Shelves.
1880 D. C. Davies Treat. Metallif. Minerals & Mining 421 Shelf, the uppermost broken surface of the rock under driftal matter.
Compounds
C1. General attributive.
a. † shelf-board n. Obsolete
ΚΠ
1548 Accts. St. John's Hosp., Canterbury (Canterbury Cathedral Archives: CCA-U13/4) In the kechynne a shelf bourde.
shelf-bracket n.
ΚΠ
1859 F. S. Cooper Ironmongers' Catal. 10 Shelf Brackets.
shelf-load n.
ΚΠ
1950 G. Greene in C. Dickens Oliver Twist (new ed.) Introd. p. vii We must forget that long shelf-load of books.
1980 Jrnl. Royal Soc. Arts Mar. 177/2 Spend how much money you will, apply ten shelf loads of regulations, there is no way of promising that there is no risk of failure.
shelf-occupant n.
ΚΠ
1878 R. Browning Poets Croisic i. lvi That and my other rare shelf-occupants.
shelf-press n.
ΚΠ
1898 S. R. Crockett Standard Bearer v The little shelf-press rudely constructed in the wall of four blocks of stone split into faces.
shelf room n.
ΚΠ
1882 H. Bradshaw in Trans. Libr. Assoc. (1884) 237 They [sc. volumes of periodical publications] await better times, when we can afford them proper shelf-room.
1893 A. Newton et al. Dict. Birds: Pt. II at Kittiwake It seems never to breed but on the side of a cliff, and there shelf-room is all it needs.
shelf space n.
ΚΠ
1954 W. K. Hancock Country & Calling iii. 95 It became my fate to struggle with a brute documentary mass that has to be measured in miles of shelf-space.
1978 J. Irving World according to Garp ii. 28 Her books…outgrew the shelf space.
b.
shelf-like adj.
ΚΠ
1851 H. Melville Moby-Dick iii. 13 On one side stood a long, low, shelf-like table covered with cracked glass cases, filled with dusty rarities.
1962 Science Survey 11 178 The inner membrane whose shelf-like folds protrude into the interior of the organelle.
C2.
shelf appeal n. the attractiveness to a customer of packaged goods displayed in a shop.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > merchandise > article(s) to be sold > [noun] > public impression or attractiveness of product
shelf appeal1933
brand-image1958
1933 Shelf Appeal July 3 (heading) Shelf Appeal. A monthly publication devoted to the planning, designing, manufacturing & display of the package.
1963 B.S.I. News Apr. 20/1 The ‘shelf-appeal’ pack designed to catch the eye of the ordinary shopper.
1964 Times Rev. Industry Feb. 23/1 With the post-war swing to more branded goods, self-service, enhanced hygiene and the need for ‘shelf-appeal’, the demand for more and better packaging has expanded fast.
shelf back n. U.S. the spine of a book.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > book > parts of book > [noun] > back
dorsea1641
back1863
spine1922
shelf back1925
1925 J. A. Holden Bookman's Gloss. 97 Shelf-back, the back of a book, on which the title is lettered.
1931 Publishers' Weekly 9 May 2322 It..is strongly bound and has the name of the periodical stamped in gold on cover and shelfback.
1960 G. A. Glaister Gloss. Bk. 375/1 Shelf back, the spine of a book.
shelf-catalogue n. a short-title catalogue of the books in a library arranged according to their location on the shelves and consequently according to their class or subject.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > book > book list > [noun] > list of books in library or libraries > types of library list or catalogue
curating book1697
card catalogue1853
title catalogue1875
form-catalogue1876
shelf-catalogue1882
sheaf catalogue1902
shelf-list1910
1882 H. Bradshaw in Trans. Libr. Assoc. (1884) 233 He enters the title briefly in the shelf-catalogue (or class-catalogue as we call it in Cambridge).
shelf cod n. cod found in inshore waters above the continental shelf.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > fish > class Osteichthyes or Teleostomi > superorder Paracanthopterygii > order Gadiformes (cod) > [noun] > family Gadidae > genus Gadus > gadus morhua (common cod) > defined by habitat
rock cod1634
red coda1705
rock codfish1796
school cod1814
shoal-cod1836
shelf cod1935
1935 ‘L. Luard’ Conquering Seas 37 Cod... Shelf Cod.
1976 Eastern Evening News (Norwich) 9 Dec. 12/5 Grimsby fish. Poor supply, good demand; six boats landed 1917 kit. Shelf cod £4 to £5.
shelf-furnace n. a continuous fine-ore furnace with inclined shelving for the reduction of mercury ores.
ΚΠ
1887 J. A. Phillips & H. Bauerman Elem. Metallurgy 553 The Hasenclever-Helbig shelf-furnace, in which a series of inclined shelves, placed on the opposite walls of a vertical shaft, retard the descent of a column of somewhat finely divided ore.
shelf furniture n. (see furniture n. 7b).
ΚΠ
1922 M. Sadleir Excurs. Victorian Bibliogr. 4 The obtaining of shelf furniture in original cloth is a matter of much seeking and of progress measured in fractions of an inch.
shelf ice n. [translating German schelfeis (O. Nordenskjöld 1908, in Zeitschr. der Ges. f. Erdkunde zu Berlin XLIII. 618, following suggestion of A. Penck)] ice which forms a thick level layer on water (usually the sea) but is attached to land.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > water > ice > body of ice > [noun] > frozen surface of body of water
iceeOE
fast ice1609
main ice1853
shelf ice1910
1910 Geogr. Jrnl. 35 726 To this ice formed in situ out of snow accumulations in the sea Nordenskiöld gives the name ‘shelf-ice’.
1938 Geogr. Jrnl. 91 511 Of all the glacial features in this region, perhaps the greatest interest attaches to the shelf-ice filling King George VI Sound.
1977 New Yorker 20 June 55/1 The river's edges are lined with ice that is stationary—‘shelf ice’, ‘shore ice’, the first to freeze at the start of winter and the last to go in spring.
shelf life n. the length of time that a commodity may be stored without becoming unfit for use or consumption.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > merchandise > article(s) to be sold > [noun] > stock > length of time commodity may be stored
shelf life1927
1927 Manufacturing Confectioner Jan. 12 (heading) What is the shelf life of your hard candy?
1933 R. A. W. Watt et al. Applic. Cathode Ray Oscillograph i. 27 The batteries may..be of very small size; ‘shelf-life’ and loss through casual leakage..are more important than their actual load current.
1940 Austral. Jrnl. Dentistry 44 39 Either copper or copper and zinc must be present in the alloy if it is to possess a reasonable ‘shelf life’.
1956 Visible Packaging of Flour Confectionery (British Cellophane Ltd.) 3 For small fancy cakes a moistureproof heat-sealing wrap..should give a shelf-life of several days.
1969 Observer 26 Jan. 5/5 The shelf-life of donated blood is about 21 days.
1980 D. Francis Reflex viii. 99 Some photographic chemicals lose their power with age. Shelf life, and so on.
shelf-list n. = shelf-catalogue n.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > book > book list > [noun] > list of books in library or libraries > types of library list or catalogue
curating book1697
card catalogue1853
title catalogue1875
form-catalogue1876
shelf-catalogue1882
sheaf catalogue1902
shelf-list1910
1910 A. E. Bostwick Amer. Public Libr. 171 The name ‘shelf list’ is sometimes improperly given to a class list.
1979 Amer. Notes & Queries June 166/2 Each volume of the shelflist is in four parts, viz., the classification schedule, the shelflist proper (showing shelf mark, author, title, place of publication, and date), the same items (excluding serials) in chronological order, and an author and title index.
shelf-lister n. one who compiles shelf-lists.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > book > library or collection of books > librarian > [noun] > others who work in libraries
book-boy1860
shelf-lister1927
shelver1952
1927 W. W. Bishop Pract. Handbk. Mod. Libr. Catal. (ed. 2) 21 The catalog room..should be..on the same floor with the order clerks, classifiers and shelf-listers.
shelf-mark n. = press mark n.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > book > library or collection of books > library, place, or institution > [noun] > press- or shelf-mark
press mark1792
shelf-mark1842
call number1876
1842 Row's Hist. Kirk (Maitland Club) Introd. Notice 56 A very carefully written MS... Old shelf mark, W, 6, 30.
1889 H. B. Wheatley How to Catalogue 233 Printed books are moved and change their shelf-marks.
shelf-mark v.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > book > library or collection of books > library, place, or institution > [verb (transitive)] > shelf-mark
press-mark1877
shelf-mark1897
1897 Macray in Burnet Own Time Pref. 9 Two folio volumes, now shelf-marked as ‘Bodl. Add. D. 18, 19’.
shelf-marking n.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > book > library or collection of books > library, place, or institution > [noun] > press- or shelf-mark > shelf-marking
shelf-marking1842
1842 Row's Hist. Kirk (Maitland Club) Introd. Notice 59 Another MS... The old shelf-marking A. 6, 7.
shelf paper n. paper used for lining shelves.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > material for making paper > paper > [noun] > other types of paper
India paper1721
whitey-brown1761
hot press1807
splash-paper1811
India proof1812
India paper proof1814
crinkled paper1820
pattern paper1849
powder paper1856
sheathing1859
chartaline1880
lining paper1880
Whatman1880
greaseproof paper1894
papyroxylin1894
shelf paper1895
corrugated paper1897
construction paper1902
Ingres paper1910
liner1921
cartolina1936
wood-free1966
1895 Montgomery Ward Catal. Spring & Summer 113/3 Shelf Paper, pinked in fancy designs, each sheet 8½ inches wide, 33 inches long.
1968 Listener 27 June 841/1 Kerouac types On the Road on a 120-foot roll of shelf paper but cannot get it published.
shelf-piece n. = sense 3b.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > parts of vessels > body of vessel > [noun] > timbers of hull > other timbers supporting beams
pointer1750
shelf-piece1830
shelf1845
beam-arm1850
fork-beam1850
hold-stanchion1867
1830 P. Hedderwick Treat. Marine Archit. 286 A stringer or shelf-piece bolted edge~ways to the clamp.
1860 H. Stuart Novice's or Young Seaman's Catech. (rev. ed.) 69 What do the beams rest upon? The shelf pieces, which extend all round the ship.
shelf-plate n. an iron shelf below the water-line of an armoured ship to support the armour-plate and its backing.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > parts of vessels > body of vessel > [noun] > sheathing > armour-plating > shelf supporting
armour shelf1865
shelf-plate1869
1869 E. J. Reed Shipbuilding ii. 20 Armour shelf-plates like those of the ‘Warrior’, which are immense angle-irons, in fact.
shelf sea n. an expanse of sea overlying continental shelf.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > water > sea or ocean > region of sea or ocean > [noun] > continental shelf > sea overlying
shelf sea1913
1913 T. C. Chamberlin in Jrnl. Geol. (Chicago) 21 523 The waters that rest upon these sea-shelves may be known conveniently as shelf-seas.
1969 G. M. Bennison & A. E. Wright Geol. Hist. Brit. Isles ii. 21 Sediments laid down in deeper water..have a quite different faunal content from the shelf-sea deposits.
shelf-warmer n. an article which is laid on the shelf instead of being put to some use.
ΚΠ
1927 Daily Express 24 Nov. 9 Thousands of women's shoes,..which women do not take a fancy to, which therefore become ‘shelf-warmers’.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1914; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
shelfn.2
/ʃɛlf/, U.S. /ʃɛlf/ 1.
a. A sandbank in the sea or river rendering the water shallow and dangerous. Also loosely applied to a submerged ledge of rock.Very common till c1750. See also shelve n.1
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > water > body of water > [noun] > shallow place
shoal839
shoala1400
bank?1473
undeep1513
shelf1545
flat1550
vadea1552
ford1563
shallow1571
shoaling1574
ebbs1577
shelve1582
bridge1624
ballow1677
shamble1769
sharp1776
poling ground1901
sea-shoal1903
1545 T. Elyot Bibliotheca (new ed.) Syrtes, quycke sandes or shelfes [1538 shelpes] in the water made by the dryfte of sande or grauell.
1571 Act 13 Eliz. c. 18 §5 The Shyriffes..shall..after that the said newe Cut shalbe made..cause the same..to be..clensed of all the Shelfes and Shallowes.
1587 A. Fleming et al. Holinshed's Chron. (new ed.) III. 1129/1 A place by the sea side, all of hard stone and pibble, called in those parts [i.e. Suffolk] a shelfe.
1617 F. Moryson Itinerary iii. 138 Before the Rode of Margat lie the dangerous shelfes or flats of sand, whereof the greatest is called Goodwin sand.
1651 W. Davenant Gondibert Pref. 19 Coasting Mapps, where the Shelves and Rocks are describ'd as well as the safe Channell.
1691 T. Hale Acct. New Inventions p. liv Deepening the River of Thames, and removing Shelfes therein.
1762 W. Falconer Shipwreck iii. 50 A shore where shelves and hidden rocks abound.
1791 Selby Bridge Act 3 To remove any shelves, or other obstructions, in the said river.
1802 Brooke's Gazetteer (ed. 12) at Ladoga Quicksands, which..cause several shelves which often prove fatal to the flat-bottomed vessels of the Russians.
1878 R. Browning La Saisiaz 34 The every way external stream that now through shoal and shelf Floats it onward.
b. figurative and in figurative context.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > danger > [noun] > instance or cause of > hidden
pitfallc1390
wevet1499
a pad in the straw1530
shelf1560
trapfall1596
snake1611
trapdoor1648
mantrap1798
death-trap1828
nigger in the woodpile1852
—— in the woodpile1857
1560 J. Daus tr. J. Sleidane Commentaries Pref. sig. Aiiiiv Whan I somtime doubted and sticked fast on the rockes and shelues.
1574 E. Hellowes tr. A. de Guevara Familiar Epist. 299 Ther is in loue after it is begon, infinit shelues, immesurable sloughes, daungerous rockes.
1604 W. Alexander Crœsus ii. ii This self-conceit is a most dangerous shelfe.
1612 W. Alexander Elegie Death Prince Henrie 9 Though generall be the losse, one shelfe confounding quyte, The King's chiefe joy, the kingdomes hope, and all the worlds delight.
c1616 R. C. Times' Whistle (1871) iv. 1288 Till i' th' end his pelfe Shipwracks his soule vpon hels rocky shelfe.
1652 E. Benlowes Theophila sig. A4 To divert thee therefore from such Shelves of indiscreet Vice.
1785 W. Cowper Tirocinium in Task 269 Yes—ye are conscious; and on all the shelves Your pupils strike upon, have struck yourselves. View more context for this quotation
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > subkingdom Metazoa > grade Triploblastica or Coelomata > phylum Mollusca > [noun] > mollusc or shell-fish > breeding or spawning > breeding ground of
shelves of margaritesa1592
a1592 R. Greene Frier Bacon (1594) sig. A4 Her teeth are shelues of pretious Margarites, Richly enclosed with ruddie curroll cleues.
1594 T. Lodge & R. Greene Looking Glasse i. i. 100 I'll fetch from Albia shelves of margarites.
1594 T. Nashe Terrors of Night G 2 b Great glaring eyes that had whole shelues of Kentish oysters in them.
Compounds
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > water > body of water > [adjective] > shallow
shoal839
shoala1400
sheld1507
shelfy1576
shelvy1602
shoaly1612
shelf-spoiled1627
shallowy1890
1627 T. May tr. Lucan Pharsalia (new ed.) ix. Q 8 A shelfe-spoil'd sea.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1914; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
shelfn.3
dialect. (Devon and Cornwall.)
(See quots.)
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > structure of the earth > constituent materials > rock > metamorphic rock > [noun] > slate
slate-stone1392
slat1605
slate1653
shindle1669
shiffer1683
shelf1849
shale-stone1880
1602 [implied in: R. Carew Surv. Cornwall i. f. 20 The tillable fields are in some places..so shelfie, that the Corne hath much adoe to fasten his roote. (at shelfy adj.3)].
1669 [implied in: J. Flavell Husbandry Spiritualized i. vii. 70 Sometimes this Plow thin, shelfy ground doth turn. (at shelfy adj.3)].
1753 [implied in: Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. at Sea-sand It is sometimes composed of shelly matter alone; but sometimes it is made up partly of this, and partly of broken stones: in this last case it is called shelfy sand. (at shelfy adj.3)].
1778 [implied in: W. Pryce Mineralogia Cornubiensis 74 The Slate, or Shelfy-stone, is always uppermost next the loamy soil. (at shelfy adj.3)].
1849 Ecclesiologist 9 288 (note) Shilf means broken slate, in small pieces, such as is used for mending roads in parts of Cornwall.
1891 R. P. Chope Dial. Hartland, Devonshire Shelf, soft slaty rock.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1914; most recently modified version published online June 2021).
shelfv.1
/ʃɛlf/, U.S. /ʃɛlf/ Obsolete. rare.
transitive. ? To ruin.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > destroy [verb (transitive)] > bring to ruin or put an end to
undoc950
shendOE
forfarea1000
endc1000
to do awayOE
aquenchc1175
slayc1175
slayc1175
stathea1200
tinea1300
to-spilla1300
batec1300
bleschea1325
honisha1325
leesea1325
wastec1325
stanch1338
corrumpa1340
destroy1340
to put awayc1350
dissolvec1374
supplanta1382
to-shend1382
aneantizec1384
avoidc1384
to put outa1398
beshenda1400
swelta1400
amortizec1405
distract1413
consumec1425
shelfc1425
abroge1427
downthringc1430
kill1435
poisonc1450
defeat1474
perish1509
to blow away1523
abrogatea1529
to prick (also turn, pitch) over the perka1529
dash?1529
to bring (also send) to (the) pot1531
put in the pot1531
wipea1538
extermine1539
fatec1540
peppera1550
disappoint1563
to put (also set) beside the saddle1563
to cut the throat of1565
to throw (also turn, etc.) over the perch1568
to make a hand of (also on, with)1569
demolish1570
to break the neck of1576
to make shipwreck of1577
spoil1578
to knock on (in) the head (also rarely at head)1579
cipher1589
ruinate1590
to cut off by the shins1592
shipwreck1599
exterminate1605
finish1611
damnify1612
ravel1614
braina1616
stagger1629
unrivet1630
consummate1634
pulverizea1640
baffle1649
devil1652
to blow up1660
feague1668
shatter1683
cook1708
to die away1748
to prove fatal (to)1759
to knock up1764
to knock (or kick) the hindsight out or off1834
to put the kibosh on1834
to cook (rarely do) one's goose1835
kibosh1841
to chaw up1843
cooper1851
to jack up1870
scuttle1888
to bugger up1891
jigger1895
torpedo1895
on the fritz1900
to put paid to1901
rot1908
down and out1916
scuppera1918
to put the skids under1918
stonker1919
liquidate1924
to screw up1933
cruel1934
to dig the grave of1934
pox1935
blow1936
to hit for six1937
to piss up1937
to dust off1938
zap1976
c1425 Cast. Persev. 1070 in Macro Plays Euery man þou schalt schende & schelfe, & holde no man betyr þanne þi selfe.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1914; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
† shelfv.2
Obsolete.
transitive. To cast on a shelf or sandbank.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > absence of movement > render immobile [verb (transitive)] > render motionless > by sticky substance
gluea1387
clag1526
clog1526
shelf1652
beboga1661
1652 E. Benlowes Theophila i. lxxx. 11 Such Saints high Tides n'ere ebbe so low, to shelf Them on the Quicksand of their self-Swallowing Corruption.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1914; most recently modified version published online March 2021).
shelfv.3
/ʃɛlf/, U.S. /ʃɛlf/ 1. transitive. To lay on the shelf, shelve.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > office > removal from office or authority > remove from office or authority [verb (transitive)]
outOE
deposec1300
remuec1325
to put out1344
to set downc1369
deprivec1374
outputa1382
removea1382
to throw outa1382
to put downc1384
privea1387
to set adowna1387
to put out of ——?a1400
amovec1425
disappoint1434
unmakec1475
dismiss1477
dispoint1483
voidc1503
to set or put beside (or besides) the cushion1546
relieve1549
cass1550
displace1553
unauthorize1554
to wring out1560
seclude1572
eject1576
dispost1577
decass1579
overboard1585
cast1587
sequester1587
to put to grass1589
cashier1592
discompose1599
abdicate1610
unseat1611
dismount1612
disoffice1627
to take off1642
unchair1645
destitute1653
lift1659
resign1674
quietus1688
superannuate1692
derange1796
shelve1812
shelf1819
Stellenbosch1900
defenestrate1917
axe1922
retire1961
the mind > attention and judgement > inattention > ignoring, disregard > ignore, disregard [verb (transitive)] > dismiss from consideration
to put out of ——a1250
to lay awaya1400
to set asidec1407
to lay by1439
to lay asidec1440
to let (something) walkc1450
to set apart?1473
reject1490
seclude?1531
to let go1535
to put offc1540
to set by1592
sepose1593
to think away1620
to look over ——a1640
prescind1650
seposit1657
decognize1659
inconsider1697
to set over1701
shelf1819
sink1820
shelve1847
eliminate1848
to count out1854
discounta1856
defenestrate1917
neg1987
1819 W. Scott Drama in Encycl. Brit.: Suppl. 4th–6th Eds. III. ii. 670/2 He is too often retained for the mere purpose of being laid aside or shelfed, as it is technically called.
1832 T. P. Thompson Exercises (1842) II. 285 Trills.., and bravuras, will be shelfed with Mandane's hoop and Alexander's wig.
1863 C. Kingsley Water-babies viii. 301 Blind brigadiers shelfed as principals of colleges.
2. Australian slang. To inform upon. Cf. shelf n.1 4.
ΚΠ
1953 K. Tennant Joyful Condemned xi. 96 Central has only to lamp you coming in here, and we all go up. Jimmy here shelfed me before.
1958 V. Kelly Greedy Ones 104 We were mates in this affair and you don't shelf your mates. And anyone who does shelf a mate has got to take what's coming to him.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1914; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1c1405
n.21545n.31602
v.1c1425v.21652
v.31819