Subscriber login


Forgot your password?

Library card login

Other

shank

Syllabification: (shank)
Pronunciation: /SHaNGk/
Translate shank | into Italian
Definition of shank

noun

  • 1 (often shanks) a person’s leg, especially the part from the knee to the ankle:the old man’s thin, bony shanks showed through his trousers
  • the lower part of an animal’s foreleg.
  • the lower part of an animal’s foreleg as a cut of meat.
  • 2the shaft or stem of a tool or implement, in particular.
  • a long narrow part of a tool connecting the handle to the operational end.
  • the cylindrical part of a bit by which it is held in a drill.
  • the long stem of a key, spoon, anchor, etc..
  • the straight part of a nail or fishhook.
  • 3a part or appendage by which something is attached to something else, especially a wire loop attached to the back of a button.
  • the band of a ring rather than the setting or gemstone.
  • 4the narrow middle of the sole of a shoe.

verb

[with object] Golf
  • strike (the ball) with the heel of the club:I shanked a shot and hit a person on a shoulder

Derivatives

shanked

adjective
[usually in combination]:a long-shanked hook

Origin:

Old English sceanca; related to Dutch schenk 'leg bone' and High German Schenkel 'thigh'. The use of the verb as a golfing term dates from the 1920s

shank in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of shank in the British & World English dictionary
  |  Cite
Oxford Dictionaries Pro

For Oxford's best resources for writers, plus thesaurus, audio, and 1.9m examples.

Shop for an Oxford dictionary

Find the perfect Oxford dictionary for you in our online shop.
SHOP NOW ►

Word of the day

cur

/ kəː /
noun
an aggressive or unkempt dog …