Synonyms

hind shank

Origin

hind shank

noun
See under shank (def. 4).
Dictionary.com Unabridged

shank

[shangk]
noun
1.
Anatomy. the part of the lower limb in humans between the knee and the ankle; leg.
2.
a corresponding or analogous part in certain animals.
3.
the lower limb in humans, including both the leg and the thigh.
4.
a cut of meat from the top part of the front (foreshank) or back (hind shank) leg of an animal.
5.
a narrow part of various devices, as a tool or bolt, connecting the end by which the object is held or moved with the end that acts upon another object.
EXPAND
6.
a straight, usually narrow, shaftlike part of various objects connecting two more important or complex parts, as the stem of a pipe.
7.
a knob, small projection, or end of a device for attaching to another object, as a small knob on the back of a solid button, or the end of a drill for gripping in a shaft.
8.
the long, straight part of an anchor connecting the crown and the ring.
9.
the straight part of a fishhook away from the bent part or prong.
10.
Music. crook1 (def. 8).
11.
Informal.
a.
the early part of a period of time: It was just the shank of the evening when the party began.
b.
the latter part of a period of time: They didn't get started until the shank of the morning.
12.
the narrow part of the sole of a shoe, lying beneath the instep.
14.
Printing. the body of a type, between the shoulder and the foot.
15.
Golf. a shot veering sharply to the right after being hit with the base of a club shaft.
16.
the part of a phonograph stylus or needle on which the diamond or sapphire tip is mounted.
17.
Jewelry. the part of a ring that surrounds the finger; hoop.
COLLAPSE
verb (used with object)
18.
Golf. to hit (a golf ball) with the base of the shaft of a club just above the club head, causing the ball to go off sharply to the right.
verb (used without object)
19.
Chiefly Scot. to travel on foot. Compare shanks' mare.
20.
shank of the evening, the main or best part of the evening: Don't leave yet—it's just the shank of the evening.

Origin:
before 900; Middle English (noun); Old English sc(e)anca; cognate with Low German schanke leg, thigh; akin to German Schenkel thigh, Schinken ham

un·shanked, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

shank
O.E. sceanca "leg, shank, shinbone," from P.Gmc. *skankon- (cf. M.L.G. schenke, Ger. schenkel "shank, leg"), perhaps lit. "that which bends," from PIE base *skeng- "crooked" (cf. O.N. skakkr "wry, distorted," Gk. skazein "to limp"). Specifically, the part of the leg from the knee to the ankle. Shank's
EXPAND
mare "one's own legs as a means of transportation" is attested from 1774. The verb, originally in golf, meaning "to strike (the ball) with the heel of the club" is recorded from 1927.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

shank (shāngk)
n.
The part of the human leg between the knee and ankle.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Slang Dictionary

shank definition


  1. n.
    a knife; a homemade knife. (Possibly named for a bone handle.) : The mugger pulled a shank on the victim.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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