\
Definition of shambles
Examples of shambles in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
When Poland embarked on this remarkable journey, its economy was in a shambles. — Mateusz Morawiecki, WSJ, "Meet the Polish Tiger," 30 Sep. 2018 The party is in a shambles in Southern California, one of its key regions for regaining control of the House. — Andrew Sullivan, Daily Intelligencer, "Is the World Done With Liberal Democracy?," 1 June 2018 With his transcript in shambles, Joe went back to the Philadelphia area where his family lived and took a job at a paper company alongside his father. — Jim Stingl, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Stingl: Marquette University dropout in 1974 finally went back and is graduating at age 65," 18 May 2018 There has, moreover, been no giant spasm of regret over Brexit, even with the negotiations in a complete shambles. — Andrew Sullivan, Daily Intelligencer, "Is the World Done With Liberal Democracy?," 1 June 2018 The once-harmonious bond between franchise and city was a shambles. — Jack Harris, azcentral, "Before Arizona snagged 2023 Super Bowl, Cardinals and Glendale had to make up," 30 May 2018 Goalkeepers Who's Hot Loris Karius - Liverpool may be something of a shambles at the back but Karius kept a clean sheet against Huddersfield before saving Harry Kane's first penalty on Sunday. — SI.com, "Premier League Fantasy Football: Who's Hot and Who's Not in Gameweek 27," 9 Feb. 2018 While Conte's title defence at Chelsea has been a shambles, Sarri has come under fire from Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis over a lack of rotation allowing Juventus to increase their lead over Serie A to six points. — SI.com, "'There Are Ways Out for Both Parties': Chelsea Target Sarri Hints at Possible Napoli Departure," 7 May 2018 Before the lawsuit could be adjudicated, Hurricanes Irma and Maria struck, leaving all financial planning in a shambles. — Mary Williams Walsh, New York Times, "Hurricane Aid Has Eased Puerto Rico’s Finances. It May Not Be Enough.," 19 Apr. 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'shambles.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Learn More about shambles
Listen to Our Podcast about shambles
Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP
Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!
From the Editors at Merriam-Webster
The Gruesome History of 'Shambles'
The Gruesome History of 'Shambles'
The word has a bloody past
Statistics for shambles
Look-up Popularity
Time Traveler for shambles
The first known use of shambles was in the 15th century
Keep scrolling for more
More Definitions for shambles
shambles
noun
English Language Learners Definition of shambles
shambles
noun plural
\
Kids Definition of shambles
Keep scrolling for more
Comments on shambles
What made you want to look up shambles? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Test Your Vocabulary
Words for Summer: A Quiz
-
- Which of the following words means “of or relating to summer”?
Test your vocabulary with our 10-question quiz!
TAKE THE QUIZ
Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZ
Share shambles
Resources for shambles