shal·low
ˈsha-(ˌ)lō 
1
: having little depth
shallow water
2
: having little extension inward or backward
office buildings have taken the form of shallow slabs—
Lewis Mumford
Lewis Mumford3
a
: penetrating only the easily or quickly perceived
shallow generalizations
b
: lacking in depth of knowledge, thought, or feeling
a shallow demagogue
4
: displacing comparatively little air : weak
shallow breathing
shallowness
noun
shallowed; shallowing; shallows
: to make shallow
: to become shallow
: a shallow place or area in a body of water
—usually used in plural but singular or plural in construction
Synonyms
Examples of shallow in a Sentence
Adjective
The shallow end of the pool is only three feet deep.
Her boyfriends were all shallow creeps.
She could only take shallow breaths.
His breathing became very shallow.
Noun
we waded through the shallows looking for tadpoles
Recent Examples on the WebLaura Lu, Ms, Parents, 21 Apr. 2024
Several mini-succulents can be combined in a shallow container for an attractive display, but given room, the tiny plants are more likely to grow larger.
—Lynn McAlpine, Better Homes & Gardens, 19 Apr. 2024
An 1887 Sanborn fire insurance map which shows the eight-foot setback on Remsen Street as the shallow white space between the street and each pink or blue building outline.
—Jeremy Lechtzin, New York Times, 19 Apr. 2024
Water cascades over the curving edge of the mosaic-tiled swimming pool into a vast, shallow pool on the lower level, over which lily pad-like overlapping circles of concrete steppingstones meander over the surface to a sunken lounge with a fire pit at its circular center.
—Mark David, Robb Report, 18 Apr. 2024
The shallow funnel ruptures the scrubby terrain with payloads of rain and snowmelt that flow down from the rim above West Clear Creek, eventually dumping into Fossil Creek.
—Mare Czinar, The Arizona Republic, 18 Apr. 2024
When hitting these shallow areas in spring, pay close attention to the wind direction when choosing a bay or cove.
—Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 18 Apr. 2024
With first pitch at 6:06 p.m. Saturday, the sun was still glaring behind home plate when Padres leadoff man Xander Bogaerts lifted a pop fly to shallow center field.
—Evan Webeck, The Mercury News, 7 Apr. 2024
Days later, Bernstein's body was found buried at the park in a shallow grave.
—CBS News, 9 Apr. 2024
IEEE Spectrum, 17 Mar. 2024
Smaller reds, however, often school up in the backcountry shallows, providing some of the best sight-fishing opportunities of the year.
—Joe Cermele, Field & Stream, 14 Mar. 2024
But then, millions of western toad tadpoles began their migration from the lake’s depths to the lily pads and shallows above, to feed on the algae.
—Christian Thorsberg, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Feb. 2024
The entire sea in that area shallowed, freshened, and then dried out, leaving deep desiccation cracks.
—Howard Lee, Ars Technica, 8 Feb. 2023
Transfer noodles to shallow serving bowl and top with cucumber, cilantro, scallions and sesame seeds.
—Kate Bradshaw, The Mercury News, 29 Jan. 2024
Valdez lifted a flyball to shallow right, and the Sox stranded their 13th and 14th runners of the game.
—Alex Speier, BostonGlobe.com, 9 Sep. 2023
Moore hit a ball out to shallow left in the top of the seventh inning that hard-charging Royals left fielder MJ Melendez was unable to field cleanly.
—Jace Evans, USA TODAY, 17 Aug. 2023
Smith flared a single to shallow right-center to load the bases with no outs, and Martinez took a full-count cutter off the plate for a walk to force home Betts for a 5-5 tie.
—Mike Digiovanna, Los Angeles Times, 22 July 2023
Don Wirth, Field & Stream, 4 Apr. 2024
Sandy coves unfurled beneath lacy casuarina trees, the water was bathtub-calm, and baby blacktip reef sharks slipped through the shallows.
—David Swanson, Travel + Leisure, 24 Mar. 2024
From the shallows, the Lucayans harvested fish by hand.
—Sean Kingsley, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 Jan. 2024
If the shallows in your local water feature some rocks and vegetation, odds increase that the perch are piled in.
—Joe Cermele, Field & Stream, 14 Mar. 2024
They were awakened when a Jeep plummeted off a 40-foot cliff and landed on its roof in the ocean’s rocky shallows.
—Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 28 Feb. 2024
And, akin to how visiting the ocean’s floor in a submersible differs from scuba diving in its shallows, spaceflight similarly has two distinct regimes.
—Rick N. Tumlinson, Scientific American, 15 Jan. 2024
Time to starting gearing up for, planning for, and taking full advantage of the annual bass spawn, when fish concentrate in the shallows to bulk up and start bedding.
—Shaye Baker, Field & Stream, 21 Feb. 2024
Colorful fish and small reef-sharks school in the shallows, while manta rays and turtles can be seen from jetties and swimming beneath the villas.
—Tom Weijand, Robb Report, 9 Nov. 2023
Adjective
But Take Note The tracks are relatively shallow, which can cause trains to derail easily.
—Laura Lu, Ms, Parents, 21 Apr. 2024
Several mini-succulents can be combined in a shallow container for an attractive display, but given room, the tiny plants are more likely to grow larger.
—Lynn McAlpine, Better Homes & Gardens, 19 Apr. 2024
An 1887 Sanborn fire insurance map which shows the eight-foot setback on Remsen Street as the shallow white space between the street and each pink or blue building outline.
—Jeremy Lechtzin, New York Times, 19 Apr. 2024
Water cascades over the curving edge of the mosaic-tiled swimming pool into a vast, shallow pool on the lower level, over which lily pad-like overlapping circles of concrete steppingstones meander over the surface to a sunken lounge with a fire pit at its circular center.
—Mark David, Robb Report, 18 Apr. 2024
The shallow funnel ruptures the scrubby terrain with payloads of rain and snowmelt that flow down from the rim above West Clear Creek, eventually dumping into Fossil Creek.
—Mare Czinar, The Arizona Republic, 18 Apr. 2024
When hitting these shallow areas in spring, pay close attention to the wind direction when choosing a bay or cove.
—Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 18 Apr. 2024
With first pitch at 6:06 p.m. Saturday, the sun was still glaring behind home plate when Padres leadoff man Xander Bogaerts lifted a pop fly to shallow center field.
—Evan Webeck, The Mercury News, 7 Apr. 2024
Days later, Bernstein's body was found buried at the park in a shallow grave.
—CBS News, 9 Apr. 2024
Verb
These devices are small enough to fit in a lab coat pocket and flexible enough to image any part of the body, from deep organs to shallow veins, with sweeping 3D views, all with a single probe.
—IEEE Spectrum, 17 Mar. 2024
Smaller reds, however, often school up in the backcountry shallows, providing some of the best sight-fishing opportunities of the year.
—Joe Cermele, Field & Stream, 14 Mar. 2024
But then, millions of western toad tadpoles began their migration from the lake’s depths to the lily pads and shallows above, to feed on the algae.
—Christian Thorsberg, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Feb. 2024
The entire sea in that area shallowed, freshened, and then dried out, leaving deep desiccation cracks.
—Howard Lee, Ars Technica, 8 Feb. 2023
Transfer noodles to shallow serving bowl and top with cucumber, cilantro, scallions and sesame seeds.
—Kate Bradshaw, The Mercury News, 29 Jan. 2024
Valdez lifted a flyball to shallow right, and the Sox stranded their 13th and 14th runners of the game.
—Alex Speier, BostonGlobe.com, 9 Sep. 2023
Moore hit a ball out to shallow left in the top of the seventh inning that hard-charging Royals left fielder MJ Melendez was unable to field cleanly.
—Jace Evans, USA TODAY, 17 Aug. 2023
Smith flared a single to shallow right-center to load the bases with no outs, and Martinez took a full-count cutter off the plate for a walk to force home Betts for a 5-5 tie.
—Mike Digiovanna, Los Angeles Times, 22 July 2023
Noun
Every year, hordes of crappie flock to the shallows to spawn.
—Don Wirth, Field & Stream, 4 Apr. 2024
Sandy coves unfurled beneath lacy casuarina trees, the water was bathtub-calm, and baby blacktip reef sharks slipped through the shallows.
—David Swanson, Travel + Leisure, 24 Mar. 2024
From the shallows, the Lucayans harvested fish by hand.
—Sean Kingsley, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 Jan. 2024
If the shallows in your local water feature some rocks and vegetation, odds increase that the perch are piled in.
—Joe Cermele, Field & Stream, 14 Mar. 2024
They were awakened when a Jeep plummeted off a 40-foot cliff and landed on its roof in the ocean’s rocky shallows.
—Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 28 Feb. 2024
And, akin to how visiting the ocean’s floor in a submersible differs from scuba diving in its shallows, spaceflight similarly has two distinct regimes.
—Rick N. Tumlinson, Scientific American, 15 Jan. 2024
Time to starting gearing up for, planning for, and taking full advantage of the annual bass spawn, when fish concentrate in the shallows to bulk up and start bedding.
—Shaye Baker, Field & Stream, 21 Feb. 2024
Colorful fish and small reef-sharks school in the shallows, while manta rays and turtles can be seen from jetties and swimming beneath the villas.
—Tom Weijand, Robb Report, 9 Nov. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'shallow.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Shallow.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shallow. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
shallow
1 of 2 adjective
shal·low
ˈshal-ō
1
: having little depth
shallow water
2
: showing little knowledge, thought, or feeling
shallowly
adverb
shallowness
noun
shallow
2 of 2 noun
: a shallow place or area in a body of water
—usually used in plural
Medical Definition
shallow
adjective
shal·low
ˈshal-(ˌ)ō, -ə(-w)
: displacing comparatively little air
shallow breathing
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