shunt
verb
\
Definition of shunt
(Entry 1 of 2)
1a : to turn off to one side : shift was shunted aside
b : to switch (a railroad car, a train, etc.) from one track to another
2 : to provide with or divert by means of an electrical shunt
3 : to divert (blood) from one part to another by a surgical shunt
4 : shuttle shunted the missiles from shelter to shelter
1 : to move to the side
2 : to travel back and forth shunted between the two towns
shunt
nounDefinition of shunt (Entry 2 of 2)
1 : a means or mechanism for turning or thrusting aside: such as
a chiefly British : a railroad switch
b : a conductor joining two points in an electrical circuit so as to form a parallel or alternative path through which a portion of the current may pass (as for regulating the amount passing in the main circuit)
c : a surgical passage created to divert a bodily fluid (such as blood) from one vessel or part to another also : a device (such as a narrow tube) used to establish a similar passage
2 chiefly British : an accident (such as a collision between two cars) especially in auto racing
Keep scrolling for more
Examples of shunt in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
High pressure domes like this tend to dominate the atmospheric landscape, shunting the jet stream far to the north and keeping everything under them locked in a pattern of hot and humid weather. — Greg Porter, Washington Post, "Oppressive heat dome engulfs the Northeast — and it will spread west this weekend," 3 July 2018 But the flood of teens soon resumed, and then the Trump administration began separating families, shunting adults into jails and their children into shelters. — Anchorage Daily News, "Inside Casa Padre, the converted Walmart where the US is holding nearly 1,500 immigrant children," 14 June 2018 But the flood of teens soon resumed, and then the Trump administration began separating families, shunting adults into jails and their children into shelters. — Michael E. Miller, Emma Brown And Aaron C. Davis, Houston Chronicle, "Inside Casa Padre, the converted Walmart where the US is holding nearly 1,500 immigrant children," 14 June 2018 The incident happened when Charles Leclerc shunted his Sauber into the back of Brendon Hartley’s Toro Rosso. — Jerome Pugmire, The Seattle Times, "Ricciardo holds nerve to win Monaco GP despite power loss," 27 May 2018 But the flood of teens soon resumed, and then the Trump administration began separating families, shunting adults into jails and their children into shelters. — Anchorage Daily News, "Inside Casa Padre, the converted Walmart where the US is holding nearly 1,500 immigrant children," 14 June 2018 But the flood of teens soon resumed, and then the Trump administration began separating families, shunting adults into jails and their children into shelters. — Michael E. Miller, Emma Brown And Aaron C. Davis, Houston Chronicle, "Inside Casa Padre, the converted Walmart where the US is holding nearly 1,500 immigrant children," 14 June 2018 The fashion world has more or less agreed with the Lebowitzes of the world, shunting shorts to the periphery of style. — Samuel Hine, GQ, "The Daring New Trend in Pants Is…Shorts," 2 July 2018 That cadre of diverse women is mostly shunted to the background as well—Ellen Wong and Britney Young get little screen time; Sunita Mani and Sydelle Noel have more material, but their stories still feel marginal. — Sonia Saraiya, HWD, "Marc Maron Is Great in GLOW, and Maybe That’s a Problem," 29 June 2018Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
The treatment, a shunt procedure to drain fluid from the brain, worked at first — but the Sooter family learned in May that Addy's tumor continued to spread, according to Yahoo. — Josh Magness, star-telegram, "Boy says goodbye to his little sister and 'partner in crime' as she dies from cancer," 11 June 2018 Neurosurgeons installed a shunt to relieve the pressure and doctors diagnosed the culprit: a rare type of brain tumor - slow-growing and noncancerous, though hardly benign. — Andrea Simakis, cleveland.com, "Cleveland Clinic, parents clash over girl's brain tumor treatment; court to decide," 13 May 2018 The shunt was doing its work because Zara had had no dizziness or vomiting for months. — Andrea Simakis, cleveland.com, "Cleveland Clinic, parents clash over girl's brain tumor treatment; court to decide," 13 May 2018 Though many months of therapy enabled him to relearn how to walk, talk and eat again, the injuries left him with scoliosis and a shunt in his head. — Donna Vickroy, Daily Southtown, "An Army vet and a man who survived a coma found friendship through science. Now they're graduating college together.," 12 May 2018 The baby is moving his legs and the brain pressure is good, which means no shunts. — Naseem S. Miller, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Orlando Health opens fetal surgery program," 18 Apr. 2018 The shunt that was placed on his brain after birth eventually failed. — Priority Health, Detroit Free Press, "Fitness Community Support: Overcoming adversity," 2 Jan. 2018 In addition to suffering with Parkinson's disease for many years, Graham's health problems in his later years included a broken hip, a broken pelvis, prostate cancer and installation of a shunt in his brain to control excess fluid. — Bill Trott, Anchorage Daily News, "Billy Graham, preacher to millions and adviser to presidents, dies at 99," 21 Feb. 2018 All or part of it may be dark because of a broken filament or a sketchy shunt (see glossary). — David Agrell, Popular Mechanics, "How to Fix a String of Christmas Lights," 28 Sep. 2017These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'shunt.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
More Definitions for shunt
shunt
verb
English Language Learners Definition of shunt
: to move (someone or something) to a different and usually less important or noticeable place or position
: to move (a train or railway car) from one track to another
See the full definition for shunt in the English Language Learners Dictionary
shunt
verb
\
Kids Definition of shunt
1 : to turn or move off to one side or out of the way Cattle were shunted into a corral.
2 : to switch (as a train) from one track to another
shunt
transitive verb
\
Medical Definition of shunt
(Entry 1 of 2)
: to divert by or as if by a shunt especially : to divert (blood) from one part to another by a surgical shunt
shunt
nounMedical Definition of shunt (Entry 2 of 2)
1 : a passage by which a bodily fluid (as blood) is diverted from one channel, circulatory path, or part to another especially : such a passage established by surgery or occurring as an abnormality an arteriovenous shunt
2a : a surgical procedure for the establishment of an artificial shunt — see portacaval shunt
b : a device (as a narrow tube) used to establish an artificial shunt plastic shunts have been used to bypass temporarily sections of major arteries— Johnson McGuire & Arnold Iglauer
Keep scrolling for more
Comments on shunt
What made you want to look up shunt? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Test Your Vocabulary
A Thanksgiving Word Quiz
-
- November comes from a word for which of the following numbers?
Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?
TAKE THE QUIZ
Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZ
Share shunt
Resources for shunt