plural shimmies
1
[by alteration]
: chemise
2
[short for shimmy-shake]
: a jazz dance characterized by a shaking of the body from the shoulders down
3
: an abnormal vibration especially in the front wheels of a motor vehicle
shimmied; shimmying
1
: to shake, quiver, or tremble in or as if in dancing a shimmy
2
: to vibrate abnormally
—used especially of automobiles
3
: shinny
Examples of shimmy in a Sentence
Verb
They were shimmying on the dance floor.
I shimmied into my jacket.
One of the car's wheels was shimmying.
Recent Examples on the Web
Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 18 June 2025
After 81 minutes Almada found the back of the net for 10-men Argentina with a fantastic shimmy on the edge of the box and a shot across goal.
—Joseph O'Sullivan, Forbes.com, 11 June 2025
Brian Truitt, USA Today, 26 June 2025
Frank Morris and brothers Clarence and John Anglin, all in their 30s, shimmied with a homemade raft through hidden holes in their cell walls, climbed through a ventilation duct onto the roof and shoved off from the island fortress into the freezing, choppy waters of San Francisco Bay.
—Chris Lau, CNN Money, 28 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for shimmy
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.
Noun
In space, Elio stumbles across adorable skeletons and shimmies through gacky pipes.
—Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 18 June 2025
After 81 minutes Almada found the back of the net for 10-men Argentina with a fantastic shimmy on the edge of the box and a shot across goal.
—Joseph O'Sullivan, Forbes.com, 11 June 2025
Verb
Yet strangely, the killer robot girl who shimmied and stabbed her way into our hearts is defanged and watered down in her return.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 26 June 2025
Frank Morris and brothers Clarence and John Anglin, all in their 30s, shimmied with a homemade raft through hidden holes in their cell walls, climbed through a ventilation duct onto the roof and shoved off from the island fortress into the freezing, choppy waters of San Francisco Bay.
—Chris Lau, CNN Money, 28 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for shimmy
Cite this Entry
“Shimmy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shimmy. Accessed 12 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share