shaft Pronunciation: /ʃɑːft; (US) ʃæft/Translate shaft | into German | into Italian | into Spanish French translation of shaftn 1 (of tool) manche (m); (of arrow) tige (f); (in machine) axe (m) 2 (passage, vent) puits (m) 3shaft of light = rai (m) shaft of lightning = éclair (m)shaft in other Oxford dictionaries Definition of shaft in the British & World English dictionary Definition of shaft in the US English dictionary