plural shivs
slang
: a small usually improvised pointed or bladed weapon
With nothing but time on their hands, the prisoners craft weapons from available resources: shivs are made from toothbrushes or pieces of metal bunks.—
Newsweek
NewsweekSome created makeshift weapons by fashioning "shivs" out of sharpened spoons and toothbrushes …—Kristian Silva
Kristian SilvaThe guards were … attacked with a makeshift weapon—a so-called shiv, fashioned from razor blades and a toothbrush …—The Irish Examiner
The Irish Examiner… remove the staple from a magazine, straighten it, mount it in a juice straw …, you got yourself a neat little shiv …—Kent H. Dixon
—sometimes used figurativelyKent H. Dixon… gave an artful lesson in how to stick a shiv into a sitting president without ever raising his voice or making a specific accusation.—Walter Shapiro
Walter Shapiro
shivved also shived; shivving also shiving; shivs
informal
: to stab or cut (someone) with a shiv (see shiv entry 1)
shivved him in the back
—often used figurativelyAny signs of dissent will result in his personally shivving the offender politically …—Hayes Brown
Hayes BrownExamples of shiv in a Sentence
Noun
watch yourself in Cell Block 8, or you'll end up with a shiv in your back
Recent Examples on the Web
Matt Donnelly, Variety, 3 Apr. 2025
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries offered the Capitol Hill equivalent of a shiv in the back when he was asked whether the Senate needed new leadership.
—Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 20 Mar. 2025
John Annese, New York Daily News, 10 Mar. 2025
Shannon says, sticking the I’m-a-housewife-and-you’re-not shiv between Alexis’s ribs.
—Peter Larsen, Orange County Register, 14 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for shiv
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Noun
The lollipop stick becomes a deadly shiv as Neeson rips them apart.
—Matt Donnelly, Variety, 3 Apr. 2025
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries offered the Capitol Hill equivalent of a shiv in the back when he was asked whether the Senate needed new leadership.
—Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 20 Mar. 2025
Verb
Even after the raid, violence at MDC has continued, including a bloody gang brawl involving several inmates carrying shivs on Feb. 22 that ended with at least 10 inmates stabbed or slashed — including Karl Jordan, who’s awaiting sentencing for killing Run-DMC icon Jam Master Jay in 2002.
—John Annese, New York Daily News, 10 Mar. 2025
Shannon says, sticking the I’m-a-housewife-and-you’re-not shiv between Alexis’s ribs.
—Peter Larsen, Orange County Register, 14 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for shiv
Cite this Entry
“Shiv.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shiv. Accessed 4 May. 2025.
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