SHIFT


Meaning of SHIFT in English

/ ʃɪft; NAmE / verb , noun

■ verb

MOVE

1.

shift (sth) (from ... ) (to ... ) to move, or move sth, from one position or place to another :

[ v ]

The action of the novel shifts from Paris to London.

Lydia shifted uncomfortably in her chair.

[ vn ]

He shifted his gaze from the child to her.

Could you help me shift some furniture?

She shifted her weight from one foot to the other.

2.

[ v , vn ] shift (yourself) ( BrE , informal ) to move quickly

SYN hurry

SITUATION / OPINION / POLICY

3.

[ v ] shift (from ... ) (to / towards / toward ... ) ( of a situation, an opinion, a policy etc. ) to change from one state, position, etc. to another :

Public attitudes towards marriage have shifted over the past 50 years.

The balance of power shifted away from workers towards employers.

4.

[ vn ] shift sth (from ... ) (to / towards / toward ... ) to change your opinion of or attitude towards sth, or change the way that you do sth :

We need to shift the focus of this debate.

The new policy shifted the emphasis away from fighting inflation.

RESPONSIBILITY

5.

[ vn ] shift responsibility / blame (for sth) (onto sb) to make sb else responsible for sth you should do or sth bad that you have done :

He tried to shift the blame for his mistakes onto his colleagues.

REMOVE MARK

6.

[ vn ] to remove sth such as a dirty mark

SYN get rid of :

a detergent that shifts even the most stubborn stains

SELL GOODS

7.

[ vn ] to sell goods, especially goods that are difficult to sell :

They cut prices drastically to try and shift stock.

IN VEHICLE

8.

[ v ] ( NAmE ) to change the gears when you are driving a vehicle :

to shift into second gear

IDIOMS

- shift your ground

- (the) shifting sands (of sth)

PHRASAL VERBS

- shift for yourself

■ noun

CHANGE

1.

[ C ] shift (in sth) a change in position or direction :

a dramatic shift in public opinion

a shift of emphasis

—see also paradigm shift

PERIOD OF WORK

2.

[ C ] a period of time worked by a group of workers who start work as another group finishes :

to be on the day / night shift at the factory

to work an eight-hour shift

working in shifts

shift workers / work

—see also swing shift

3.

[ C +sing./pl. v . ] the workers who work a particular shift :

The night shift has / have just come off duty.

ON COMPUTER

4.

[ U ] the system on a computer keyboard or typewriter that allows capital letters or a different set of characters to be typed :

a shift key

CLOTHING

5.

[ C ] a woman's simple straight dress

6.

[ C ] a simple straight piece of clothing worn by women in the past as underwear

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WORD ORIGIN

Old English sciftan arrange, divide, share , of Germanic origin; related to German schichten to layer. A common Middle English sense change, replace gave rise to the noun senses 5 and 6 (via the notion of changing one's clothes) and senses 2 and 3 (via the concept of relays of workers).

Oxford Advanced Learner's English Dictionary.      Оксфордский английский словарь для изучающик язык на продвинутом уровне.