n.
Pronunciation: ' sham-b ə lz
Function: noun plural but singular or plural in construction
Etymology: Middle English shameles, plural of schamel vendor's table, footstool, from Old English sceamol stool, from Latin scamillum, diminutive of scamnum stool, bench; perhaps akin to Sanskrit skambha pillar
Date: 15th century
1 archaic : a meat market
2 : SLAUGHTERHOUSE
3 a : a place of mass slaughter or bloodshed <the battlefield became a shambles > b : a scene or a state of great destruction : WRECKAGE <the city was a shambles after the bombing> c (1) : a scene or a state of great disorder or confusion <an economy in shambles > (2) : great confusion : MESS