shoehorned; shoehorning; shoehorns
1
: to force to be included or admitted
shoehorned irrelevant arguments into his essay
2
: to force or compress into an insufficient space or period of time : squeeze
shoehorn the past, present, and future into about 500 pages—
Otis Port
Otis Port
Synonyms
Examples of shoehorn in a Sentence
Verb
A parking garage has been shoehorned between the buildings.
She's trying to shoehorn a year's worth of classes into a single semester.
I don't know how they managed to shoehorn everyone into that little room.
Recent Examples on the WebAmy Louise Bailey, Travel + Leisure, 13 Oct. 2023
Marino honored Peninsula must-haves, like enormous walk-in dressing rooms with full sartorial knickknacks—who doesn’t need a shoehorn?
—Linda Laban, Robb Report, 12 Sep. 2023
In memory care units, anything can become a weapon — toilet plungers, shoehorns, electric razors, TV remotes, metal trash grabbers and walking canes.
—Sahana Jayaraman, AZCentral.com, 27 June 2023
Steele needs to stay at right tackle, not switch positions in some effort to keep Tyler Smith at left tackle and shoehorn Tyron Smith in at right tackle.
—David Moore, Dallas News, 4 Apr. 2023
It was born in a shoehorn.
—Alexander Zaitchik, The New Republic, 1 June 2021
The other type of flat whisk looks like a balloon whisk that has had its tines flattened between the pages of a heavy book and slightly bent at the tip, like a shoehorn.
—Genevieve Yam, Bon Appétit, 28 Sep. 2022
Yet there’s something seductive about their ease: No laborious lace tying, certainly no shoehorn needed.
—Liana Satenstein, Vogue, 30 Aug. 2022
In his autobiography, her friend Hughes would recount a time when, mid-party, A’Lelia started to cry about an ex-husband, retreating to her room and cradling a gold shoehorn her former lover had left her with.
—Mayukh Sen, Bon Appétit, 14 Oct. 2021
Anant Gupta, Washington Post, 21 Nov. 2023
As such, many households are now having to shoehorn payments that are hundreds of dollars in size into already snug monthly budgets.
—Alicia Wallace, CNN, 11 Oct. 2023
Where most lawmakers try to shoehorn into history books based on novel legislation, longevity in their seats, or being masterful deal makers, Gaetz seemed to be chasing little more than sheer celebrity.
—Philip Elliott, TIME, 4 Oct. 2023
Vivek Ramaswamy, who is still introducing himself to voters, shoehorned in some of his biography.
—Annie Linskey, WSJ, 28 Sep. 2023
Today, however, the A.P. test score is the alpha and omega of students’ experience with A.P. coursework, with lesson plans and pacing shoehorned into test-preparation packages dictated by the College Board.
—Aaron R. Hanlon, The New Republic, 6 Sep. 2023
Even those who accurately diagnose the problem are trying to solve it by shoehorning AI into existing or historical governance frameworks.
—Ian Bremmer and Mustafa Suleyman, Foreign Affairs, 16 Aug. 2023
As its sub-par performances at the World Cup and the Tokyo Olympics showed, the USWNT needs an exceptional tactician who will utilize his or her players’ strengths rather than trying to shoehorn them into a specific system.
—Nancy Armour, USA TODAY, 17 Aug. 2023
So often in musical theater today, showstoppers seem shoehorned into the story.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2023
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Noun
Other useful features include an interior mesh pocket, which can be used for storing accessories (socks, heel pads, shoehorns, etc.) and a top handle for easy transportation.
—Amy Louise Bailey, Travel + Leisure, 13 Oct. 2023
Marino honored Peninsula must-haves, like enormous walk-in dressing rooms with full sartorial knickknacks—who doesn’t need a shoehorn?
—Linda Laban, Robb Report, 12 Sep. 2023
In memory care units, anything can become a weapon — toilet plungers, shoehorns, electric razors, TV remotes, metal trash grabbers and walking canes.
—Sahana Jayaraman, AZCentral.com, 27 June 2023
Steele needs to stay at right tackle, not switch positions in some effort to keep Tyler Smith at left tackle and shoehorn Tyron Smith in at right tackle.
—David Moore, Dallas News, 4 Apr. 2023
It was born in a shoehorn.
—Alexander Zaitchik, The New Republic, 1 June 2021
The other type of flat whisk looks like a balloon whisk that has had its tines flattened between the pages of a heavy book and slightly bent at the tip, like a shoehorn.
—Genevieve Yam, Bon Appétit, 28 Sep. 2022
Yet there’s something seductive about their ease: No laborious lace tying, certainly no shoehorn needed.
—Liana Satenstein, Vogue, 30 Aug. 2022
In his autobiography, her friend Hughes would recount a time when, mid-party, A’Lelia started to cry about an ex-husband, retreating to her room and cradling a gold shoehorn her former lover had left her with.
—Mayukh Sen, Bon Appétit, 14 Oct. 2021
Verb
Kashyap shoehorned into the script thinly veiled criticism of Indian politicians’ coziness with billionaire industrialists and the government’s handling of the pandemic.
—Anant Gupta, Washington Post, 21 Nov. 2023
As such, many households are now having to shoehorn payments that are hundreds of dollars in size into already snug monthly budgets.
—Alicia Wallace, CNN, 11 Oct. 2023
Where most lawmakers try to shoehorn into history books based on novel legislation, longevity in their seats, or being masterful deal makers, Gaetz seemed to be chasing little more than sheer celebrity.
—Philip Elliott, TIME, 4 Oct. 2023
Vivek Ramaswamy, who is still introducing himself to voters, shoehorned in some of his biography.
—Annie Linskey, WSJ, 28 Sep. 2023
Today, however, the A.P. test score is the alpha and omega of students’ experience with A.P. coursework, with lesson plans and pacing shoehorned into test-preparation packages dictated by the College Board.
—Aaron R. Hanlon, The New Republic, 6 Sep. 2023
Even those who accurately diagnose the problem are trying to solve it by shoehorning AI into existing or historical governance frameworks.
—Ian Bremmer and Mustafa Suleyman, Foreign Affairs, 16 Aug. 2023
As its sub-par performances at the World Cup and the Tokyo Olympics showed, the USWNT needs an exceptional tactician who will utilize his or her players’ strengths rather than trying to shoehorn them into a specific system.
—Nancy Armour, USA TODAY, 17 Aug. 2023
So often in musical theater today, showstoppers seem shoehorned into the story.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'shoehorn.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Dictionary Entries Near shoehorn
Cite this Entry
“Shoehorn.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shoehorn. Accessed 10 Dec. 2023.
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Kids Definition
shoehorn
noun
shoe·horn
-ˌhȯrn
: a curved piece (as of metal) to help in putting on a shoe
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