SHIELD

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does shield mean? 

• SHIELD (noun)
  The noun SHIELD has 3 senses:

1. a protective covering or structure

2. armor carried on the arm to intercept blows

3. hard outer covering or case of certain organisms such as arthropods and turtles

  Familiarity information: SHIELD used as a noun is uncommon.

• SHIELD (verb)
  The verb SHIELD has 2 senses:

1. protect, hide, or conceal from danger or harm

2. hold back a thought or feeling about

  Familiarity information: SHIELD used as a verb is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• SHIELD (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A protective covering or structure

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("shield" is a kind of...):

protection; protective cover; protective covering (a covering that is intend to protect from damage or injury)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "shield"):

nipple shield (a rubber or plastic shield to protect the nipples of nursing women)

plate; scale; shell (a metal sheathing of uniform thickness (such as the shield attached to an artillery piece to protect the gunners))

shielding (a shield of lead or concrete intended as a barrier to radiation emitted in nuclear decay)

shielding (shield consisting of an arrangement of metal mesh or plates designed to protect electronic equipment from ambient electromagnetic interference)

Derivation:

shield (protect, hide, or conceal from danger or harm)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Armor carried on the arm to intercept blows

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

buckler; shield

Hypernyms ("shield" is a kind of...):

armor; armour (protective covering made of metal and used in combat)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "shield"):

escutcheon; scutcheon (a shield; especially one displaying a coat of arms)

pavis; pavise ((Middle Ages) a large heavy oblong shield protecting the whole body; originally carried but sometimes set up in permanent position)

Derivation:

shield (protect, hide, or conceal from danger or harm)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Hard outer covering or case of certain organisms such as arthropods and turtles

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Synonyms:

carapace; cuticle; shell; shield

Hypernyms ("shield" is a kind of...):

scute (large bony or horny plate as on an armadillo or turtle or the underside of a snake)

Meronyms (substance of "shield"):

shell (the material that forms the hard outer covering of many animals)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "shield"):

cuticula (the outer body wall of an insect)

Holonyms ("shield" is a part of...):

turtle (any of various aquatic and land reptiles having a bony shell and flipper-like limbs for swimming)

arthropod (invertebrate having jointed limbs and a segmented body with an exoskeleton made of chitin)

mollusc; mollusk; shellfish (invertebrate having a soft unsegmented body usually enclosed in a shell)

• SHIELD (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they shield    ... he / she / it shields   
Past simple: shielded   
Past participle: shielded   
-ing form: shielding   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Protect, hide, or conceal from danger or harm

Classified under:

Verbs of fighting, athletic activities

Synonyms:

screen; shield

Hypernyms (to "shield" is one way to...):

protect (shield from danger, injury, destruction, or damage)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody
Something ----s something

Derivation:

shield (armor carried on the arm to intercept blows)

shield (a protective covering or structure)

shielder (a person who cares for persons or property)

shielding (the act of shielding from harm)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Hold back a thought or feeling about

Classified under:

Verbs of seeing, hearing, feeling

Synonyms:

harbor; harbour; shield

Context example:

She is harboring a grudge against him

Hypernyms (to "shield" is one way to...):

conceal; hide (prevent from being seen or discovered)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody
Something ----s something

 Context examples 

God shield me from harm this night!

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

He dropped the whip and shielded his throat with his arms.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

The protein surface is also covered by a coat of sugar molecules that help shield Env from the immune system.

(The Structure and Dynamics of HIV Surface Spikes, NIH)

For that reason, and for no other, he shielded me.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

We knew Arctic sea ice was decreasing, but the snow cover has become so thin that its shield has become a veil.

(Snow cover on Arctic Sea ice has thinned 30 to 50 percent, NASA)

Perhaps the magnetic field shields the surface from weathering by the solar wind.

(NASA Research Gives New Insights into How the Moon Got 'Inked', NASA)

The lamp shining in broad daylight and the remains of powder upon the shield were successive links in a fairly obvious chain.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Nay, but not upon another man's shield.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

We don't keep silence to shield him, but someone else, and it will make more trouble if you interfere.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

Located just south of Mars' equator, Arsia Mons is the southernmost member of a trio of broad, gently sloping shield volcanoes collectively known as Tharsis Montes.

(Mars Volcano, Earth's Dinosaurs Went Extinct About the Same Time, NASA)