variants
or less commonly shinney
1
: a variation of hockey played by children with a curved stick and a ball or block of wood
also
: the stick used
2
: an informal game of ice hockey played usually outdoors
shinnied; shinnying
: to move oneself up or down something vertical (such as a pole) especially by alternately hugging it with the arms or hands and the legs
Examples of shinny in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Scott Wheeler, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2025
Born 4½ years after his brother, Cal, Ryan was always at a physical disadvantage in neighborhood games of shinny.
—Alex Prewitt, SI.com, 2 Oct. 2019
Not far away, a group of youngsters kicked up plenty of dust on a hot day, playing shinny.
—Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Aug. 2019
The Predators were the last team to qualify for this year’s shinny tournament and the first to get to the final.
—Steve Rosenbloom, chicagotribune.com, 26 May 2017
The Christian Science Monitor, 3 Aug. 2022
The slippery custom began a half-century ago merely as a means to dissuade drunken daredevils from attempting to shinny up the poles in order to mingle with paying guests.
—Doug MacCash | Staff Writer, NOLA.com, 25 Jan. 2021
No hunter, regardless of how hard-core, wants to strap a 40-pound stand to his back, trek two miles back into the wilderness, then try to shinny up a tree with it.
—The Editors, Field & Stream, 22 Aug. 2019
Two hours south of Kazinga Channel is the Ishasha Sector of the park, home to the famous tree-climbing lions that shinny up ficus trees and nap during the hot afternoon hours.
—Tom Hanscom, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 July 2019
There are now escape chutes (basically, giant collapsible fabric tubes for shinnying down) and small parachutes.
—Alex Williams, New York Times, 23 Sep. 2017
Daedalus ignored her and started shinnying up the pole.
—John Kelly, Washington Post, 20 Aug. 2017
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Noun
In games of shinny on the backyard rink, Slukynsky would follow his brother Grant and his friends onto the ice.
—Scott Wheeler, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2025
Born 4½ years after his brother, Cal, Ryan was always at a physical disadvantage in neighborhood games of shinny.
—Alex Prewitt, SI.com, 2 Oct. 2019
Not far away, a group of youngsters kicked up plenty of dust on a hot day, playing shinny.
—Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Aug. 2019
The Predators were the last team to qualify for this year’s shinny tournament and the first to get to the final.
—Steve Rosenbloom, chicagotribune.com, 26 May 2017
Verb
Fanning out like urban guerrillas through Paris’ darkened streets well after midnight, the anti-waste activists shinny up walls and drain pipes, reaching for switches to turn off the lights. Click.
—The Christian Science Monitor, 3 Aug. 2022
The slippery custom began a half-century ago merely as a means to dissuade drunken daredevils from attempting to shinny up the poles in order to mingle with paying guests.
—Doug MacCash | Staff Writer, NOLA.com, 25 Jan. 2021
No hunter, regardless of how hard-core, wants to strap a 40-pound stand to his back, trek two miles back into the wilderness, then try to shinny up a tree with it.
—The Editors, Field & Stream, 22 Aug. 2019
Two hours south of Kazinga Channel is the Ishasha Sector of the park, home to the famous tree-climbing lions that shinny up ficus trees and nap during the hot afternoon hours.
—Tom Hanscom, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 July 2019
There are now escape chutes (basically, giant collapsible fabric tubes for shinnying down) and small parachutes.
—Alex Williams, New York Times, 23 Sep. 2017
Daedalus ignored her and started shinnying up the pole.
—John Kelly, Washington Post, 20 Aug. 2017
Cite this Entry
“Shinny.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shinny. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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