shelved; shelving
1
: to furnish with shelves
2
: to place on a shelf
shelve books
3
a
: to remove from active service
b
: to put off or aside
shelve a project
: to slope in a formation like a shelf
shelver
noun
Examples of shelve in a Sentence
The books were shelved according to category.
let's shelve the project for now
Recent Examples on the Web
The bill was shelved before the legislature could vote on it.
—
Seema Mehta, Los Angeles Times, 2 Jan. 2026
Some of the experiments that scientists shelved this year could still be done at later dates.
—Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 30 Dec. 2025
Also shelved Tuesday were left tackle Trent Williams (hamstring), fullback Kyle Juszczyk (hip) and defensive lineman Keion White (groin) because of injuries in Sunday night’s 42-38 win over the Chicago Bears.
—Cam Inman, Mercury News, 30 Dec. 2025
The project’s costs came to at least $15 billion before getting shelved.
—Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shelve
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.
Seema Mehta, Los Angeles Times, 2 Jan. 2026
Some of the experiments that scientists shelved this year could still be done at later dates.
—Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 30 Dec. 2025
Also shelved Tuesday were left tackle Trent Williams (hamstring), fullback Kyle Juszczyk (hip) and defensive lineman Keion White (groin) because of injuries in Sunday night’s 42-38 win over the Chicago Bears.
—Cam Inman, Mercury News, 30 Dec. 2025
The project’s costs came to at least $15 billion before getting shelved.
—Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shelve
Cite this Entry
“Shelve.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shelve. Accessed 9 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share