1
: the use of marking made within outlines to suggest three-dimensionality, shadow, or degrees of light and dark in a picture or drawing
2
: an interpretative effect in music gained especially by subtle changes in dynamics
Examples of shading in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The map is in black and white, with pools of orange and blue shading representing the various warehouses, office buildings and housing developments that one of Perot’s companies, Hillwood, has splayed across the region since the late 1980s.
—
Conor Dougherty, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2025
The higher-speed chip also unlocks some additional graphics capabilities like ray tracing, mesh shading, and dynamic caching for graphics-intensive tasks.
—Brenda Stolyar, WIRED, 5 Mar. 2025
Hackman often drew on these painful memories when roles required a darker shading.
—Tom Gliatto, People.com, 4 Mar. 2025
Oesterheld’s ingenuity and Solano López’s deceptively simple, darkly expressive drawing and shading produce a science-fiction horror tale of rare distinctiveness.
—Mike Hale, New York Times, 1 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for shading
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Conor Dougherty, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2025
The higher-speed chip also unlocks some additional graphics capabilities like ray tracing, mesh shading, and dynamic caching for graphics-intensive tasks.
—Brenda Stolyar, WIRED, 5 Mar. 2025
Hackman often drew on these painful memories when roles required a darker shading.
—Tom Gliatto, People.com, 4 Mar. 2025
Oesterheld’s ingenuity and Solano López’s deceptively simple, darkly expressive drawing and shading produce a science-fiction horror tale of rare distinctiveness.
—Mike Hale, New York Times, 1 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for shading
Cite this Entry
“Shading.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shading. Accessed 1 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share