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shoulders

 - 10 dictionary results

shoul⋅der

  [shohl-der]
–noun
1. the part of each side of the body in humans, at the top of the trunk, extending from each side of the base of the neck to the region where the arm articulates with the trunk.
2. Usually, shoulders. these two parts together with the part of the back joining them.
3. a corresponding part in animals.
4. the upper foreleg and adjoining parts of a sheep, goat, etc.
5. the joint connecting the arm or the foreleg with the trunk.
6. a shoulderlike part or projection.
7. Ornithology. the bend of a bird's wing, between the hand and the forearm, esp. when distinctively colored, as in the red-shouldered hawk, Buteo lineatus.
8. a cut of meat that includes the upper joint of the foreleg.
9. Often, shoulders. Informal. capacity for bearing responsibility or blame or sympathizing with other people: If you want to tell me your troubles, I have broad shoulders.
10. a steplike change in the contour of an object, as for opposing or limiting motion along it or for an abutment.
11. Carpentry.
a. the end surface or surfaces of a piece from which a tenon or tenons project.
b. an inclined and raised surface, as on a joggle post, for receiving and supporting the foot of a strut or the like.
12. Fortification. the angle of a bastion between the face and the flank.
13. Printing. the flat surface on a type body extending beyond the base of the letter or character.
14. the part of a garment that covers, or fits over, the shoulder.
15. (in leather manufacturing) that part of the hide anterior to the butt.
16. either of the two edges or borders along a road, esp. that portion on which vehicles can be parked in emergencies. Compare soft shoulder.
17. shoulder season.
18. Furniture. knee (def. 6).
–verb (used with object)
19. to push with or as if with the shoulder, esp. roughly: to shoulder someone aside.
20. to take upon, support, or carry on or as if on the shoulder or shoulders: He shouldered his knapsack and walked on.
21. to assume as a responsibility: to shoulder the expense.
–verb (used without object)
22. to push with or as if with the shoulder: to shoulder through a crowd.
—Idioms
23. cry on someone's shoulder, to reveal one's problems to another person in order to obtain sympathy: Don't cry on my shoulder—this mess is your own fault.
24. put one's shoulder to the wheel, to work energetically toward a goal; put forth effort: If we put our shoulders to the wheel, we'll be able to finish the job soon.
25. rub shoulders with, to come into association with; mingle with: As a social worker in one of the worst slum areas, she rubs shoulders with the poor and the helpless.
26. shoulder arms, Military.
a. to place a rifle muzzle upward on the right or left shoulder, with the buttstock in the corresponding hand.
b. the command to shoulder arms.
27. shoulder to shoulder, side by side; with united effort: The volunteers worked shoulder to shoulder with the natives in harvesting the crops.
28. straight from the shoulder, without evasion; directly; candidly: The lawyer told him straight from the shoulder that his case was weak.
Use shoulders in a Sentence
Origin:
bef. 900; (n.) ME sholder, s(c)hulder, OE sculdor; c. D schouder, G Schulter; (v.) ME shulderen, deriv. of the n.

Synonyms:
21. bear, undertake, carry.

knee

  [nee] noun, verb, kneed, knee⋅ing.
–noun
1. Anatomy. the joint of the leg that allows for movement between the femur and tibia and is protected by the patella; the central area of the leg between the thigh and the lower leg.
2. Zoology. the corresponding joint or region in the hind leg of a quadruped; stifle.
3. a joint or region likened to this but not anatomically homologous with it, as the tarsal joint of a bird, the carpal joint in the forelimb of the horse or cow, etc.
4. the part of a garment covering the knee.
5. something resembling a bent knee, esp. a rigid or braced angle between two framing members.
6. Also called hip, shoulder. Furniture. the inward curve toward the top of a cabriole leg.
7. Building Trades.
a. the junction of the top and either of the uprights of a bent.
b. a curved member for reinforcing the junction of two pieces meeting at an angle.
8. Also called kneeler. a stone cut to follow a sharp return angle.
–verb (used with object)
9. to strike or touch with the knee.
10. to secure (a structure, as a bent) with a knee.
–verb (used without object)
11. Obsolete. to go down on the knees; kneel.
—Idioms
12. bring someone to his or her knees, to force someone into submission or compliance.
13. cut (someone) off at the knees, to squelch or humiliate (a person) suddenly and thoroughly: The speaker cut the heckler off at the knees.
14. on one's or its knees,
a. in a supplicatory position or manner: I came to him on my knees for the money.
b. in a desperate or declining condition: The country's economy is on its knees.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME cneo, OE cnēo(w); c. G, D knie, ON knē, Goth kniu, L genu, Gk góny, Skt jānu knee

shoulder season

 
–noun
a travel season between peak and off-peak seasons, esp. spring and fall, when fares tend to be relatively low.
Also called shoulder.

Origin:
1960–65
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To shoulders
shoul·der   (shōl'dər)   
n.  

    1. The joint connecting the arm with the torso.

    2. The part of the human body between the neck and upper arm.

    3. The joint of a vertebrate animal that connects the forelimb to the trunk.

    4. The part of an animal near this joint.

    5. The part of a bird's wing between the wrist and the trunk.

    6. The angle between the face and flank of a bastion in a fortification.

    7. The area between the body and neck of a bottle or vase.

    8. The end surface of a board from which a tenon projects.

    9. Printing The flat surface on the body of type that extends beyond the letter or character.

    1. The joint of a vertebrate animal that connects the forelimb to the trunk.

    2. The part of an animal near this joint.

    3. The part of a bird's wing between the wrist and the trunk.

    4. The angle between the face and flank of a bastion in a fortification.

    5. The area between the body and neck of a bottle or vase.

    6. The end surface of a board from which a tenon projects.

    7. Printing The flat surface on the body of type that extends beyond the letter or character.

  3. The area of the back from one shoulder to the other. Often used in the plural.

  4. A cut of meat including the joint of the foreleg and adjacent parts.

  5. The portion of a garment that covers the shoulder.

  6. An angled or sloping part, as:

    1. The angle between the face and flank of a bastion in a fortification.

    2. The area between the body and neck of a bottle or vase.

    3. The end surface of a board from which a tenon projects.

    4. Printing The flat surface on the body of type that extends beyond the letter or character.

  7. The area of an item or object that serves as an abutment or surrounds a projection, as:

    1. The end surface of a board from which a tenon projects.

    2. Printing The flat surface on the body of type that extends beyond the letter or character.

  8. The edge or border running on either side of a roadway.

v.   shoul·dered, shoul·der·ing, shoul·ders

v.   tr.

  1. To carry or place (a burden, for example) on the shoulders.

  2. To take on; assume: shouldered the blame for his friends.

  3. To push or apply force to, with or as if with the shoulder.

  4. To make (one's way) by or as if by shoving obstacles with one's shoulders.

v.   intr.

  1. To push with the shoulders.

  2. To make one's way by or as if by shoving obstacles with one's shoulders.


[Middle English shulder, from Old English sculdor.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

knee 
O.E. cneo, cneow "knee," from P.Gmc. *knewan (cf. O.N. kne, O.Fris. kni, M.Du. cnie, O.H.G. kniu), from PIE base *g(e)neu- (cf. Skt. janu, Avestan znum, Hittite genu "knee;" Gk. gony "knee," gonia "corner, angle;" L. genu "knee"). The verb meaning "to strike with the knee" is first recorded 1896. Phrase knee-high to a grasshopper first recorded 1851 (earliest form was knee-high to a toad, 1814). Knee-deep is from 1535. Knee-jerk (the patellar reflex) is a neurological phenomenon discovered and named 1876; the figurative use appeared soon after the phrase was coined. Knee-slapper "funny joke" is from 1966.

shoulder 
O.E. sculdor, from W.Gmc. *skuldro (cf. M.Du. scouder, Du. schouder, O.Fris. skoldere, M.L.G. scholder, O.H.G. scultra, Ger. Schulter), of unknown origin, perhaps related to shield. Meaning "edge of the road" is attested from 1933. The verb is first attested c.1300 with sense "to push with the shoulder;" meaning "take a burden" first recorded 1582. Cold shoulder (Neh. ix:29) translates L. humerum recedentum dare in Vulgate (but see alternate explanation under cold).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: knee
Pronunciation: 'nE
Function: noun
1 a : a joint in the middle part of the human leg that is the articulation between the femur,tibia, and patella called also knee joint b : the part of the leg that includes this joint
2 a : the joint in the hind leg of a 4-footed vertebrate thatcorresponds to the human knee b : the carpal joint of the foreleg of a 4-footed vertebrate —kneed /'nEd/ adjective

Main Entry: shoul·der
Pronunciation: 'shOl-d&r
Function: noun
1 : the laterally projecting part of the human body formed of the bones andjoints with their covering tissue by which the arm is connected with the trunk
2 : the two shoulders and the upper part of the back —usually used in plural
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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knee (nē)
n.

  1. The joint between the thigh and the lower leg, formed by the articulation of the femur and the tibia and covered anteriorly by the patella.

  2. The region of the leg that encloses and supports this joint.

shoulder shoul·der (shōl'dər)
n.

  1. The joint connecting the arm with the torso.

  2. The part of the human body between the neck and upper arm.

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