shelve

verb

ˈshelv 

shelved; shelving

transitive verb

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

intransitive verb

: to slope in a formation like a shelf

shelver noun

Synonyms

• defer
• delay
• hold off (on)
• hold over
• hold up
• lay over
• postpone
• put off
• put over
• remit

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

In 1999, 27-year-old Ka joined the New York City Fire Department and shelved his music career, rising in the ranks, being a first responder during the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and eventually becoming captain. —Jade Gomez, People.com, 14 Oct. 2024

And while shoppers are in the grocery section of Target, the product is hard to miss–not just because of the colorful labels, but because they’re shelved on the prominent sidecap display. —Andrew Watman, Forbes, 8 Oct. 2024

During this period, several promising concept vehicles, such as the Chrysler Airflow, were revealed and appeared production-ready, only to be shelved. —Jason Ma, Fortune, 7 Oct. 2024

There are stacks of dozens of books piled on top of her shelves, waiting to be processed and shelved or to have their spines and covers repaired. —Scottie Andrew, CNN, 29 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

shelf

First Known Use

1598, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Kids Definition

shelve

verb

ˈshelv 

shelved; shelving

1

: to place on a shelf

shelve books

2

: to put off or aside : defer

shelve a project

shelver noun