shrug

1 of 2

verb

ˈshrəg 

especially Southern ˈsrəg

shrugged; shrugging

intransitive verb

: to raise or draw in the shoulders especially to express aloofness, indifference, or uncertainty

transitive verb

: to lift or contract (the shoulders) especially to express aloofness, indifference, or uncertainty

shrug

2 of 2

noun

1

: an act of shrugging

2

: a woman's small waist-length or shorter jacket

Examples of shrug in a Sentence

Verb

I asked if he wanted to go out to dinner, and he just shrugged.

He just shrugged his shoulders.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Tics consist of movements, such as eye blinking or shoulder shrugging, or vocalizations, such as throat clearing or brief sounds. —Rena Zito, Fortune, 26 Feb. 2026

Manuel then slipped into a stark white dress overflowing with ruffles and shrugged on a matching lace shawl with long fringing over it—all key elements to bringing his hypnotizing moves to life. —Condé Nast Traveler, 25 Feb. 2026

Noun

Still, in conversations with strategists steeped in the state’s politics, almost everyone offers the same shrug as to whether Texas is really in contention this year. —Philip Elliott, Time, 26 Feb. 2026

There’s plenty of evidence from the past year to support that theory, from the ouster of Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela, to attacks on Russian shadow fleet vessels by Ukrainian special forces, to the brief Israel-Iran conflict last summer, all of which produced a collective shrug from oil traders. —Tim McDonnell, semafor.com, 19 Feb. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English schruggen

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Noun

1594, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing shrug

• shrug off

Rhymes for shrug

• chug
• doug
• drug
• dug
• hug
• jug
• lug
• mug
• plug
• pug
• rug
• rugg

Kids Definition

shrug

verb

ˈshrəg

shrugged; shrugging

: to draw or hunch up the shoulders usually to express doubt, uncertainty, or lack of interest

shrug noun