shunt

1 of 2

verb

ˈshənt 

shunted; shunting; shunts

transitive verb

1

a

: 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 or other bodily fluid) from one part to another by a surgical shunt

4

: shuttle

shunted the missiles from shelter to shelter

intransitive verb

1

: to move to the side

2

: to travel back and forth

shunted between the two towns

shunter noun

shunt

2 of 2

noun

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

Examples of shunt in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

That said, ongoing storms across the Midwest will exhale cool air, which may undercut storms or shunt the tornado risk farther south. —Naomi Schanen, Washington Post, 14 Mar. 2024

At least that's Marge's lesson as the logos for all the Fox programming that caused this installment to, once more, be shunted into the first week in November are turned into meatloaf for the cold open. —Dennis Perkins, EW.com, 24 Nov. 2023

Coverage from Kirkus Reviews can be purchased too—and unlike at Publishers Weekly, these aren’t shunted to a separate site. —Christopher Null, WIRED, 7 Feb. 2024

The ordinary objective of the sports movie—to win a championship—is shunted off to the side in favor of a story about the curse supposedly affixed to the family. —Kyle Smith, WSJ, 13 Dec. 2023

Twenty-three minutes after Locke removed the vessel clamps, human urine began to flow from the pig kidney into its ureter, the tube that shunts urine from the kidney to the bladder. —Elizabeth Svoboda, Discover Magazine, 3 Dec. 2023

In modern-day America, the elderly are often shunted aside, ignored, or worse. —Lila MacLellan, Fortune, 23 Sep. 2023

Republicans want Democrats to accept a version of a House bill called the Secure the Border Act, which would substantially curtail asylum, fund the construction of more border wall, and effectively shunt asylum seekers into Mexico. —Jonathan Blitzer, The New Yorker, 7 Dec. 2023

With narrative elegance, formal brio and exquisite feeling, Cooper ushers Felicia into the spotlight and sometimes shunts the attention-hogging Lenny off into the wings. —Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times, 24 Nov. 2023

Noun

During Tuesday’s season premiere of ‘Little People, Big World,’ Zach Roloff's migraines lead to his hospitalization and an emergency shunt revision Zach and Tori Roloff are recalling the terrifying migraines that led to Zach’s emergency shunt revision in February 2023. —Vanessa Etienne, Peoplemag, 21 Feb. 2024

The biggest reason, however, owes much to a seismic shunt in international business. —John Hopewell, Variety, 3 Dec. 2023

The pair were caught trespassing in surveillance video and detained by Whatcom sheriff’s deputies, who discovered the shunt in the tracks and saw that Reiche was carrying a paper bag containing gloves, a drill, magnetic adhesive, and other items that would be used to install a shunt. —Houston Keene, Fox News, 13 Sep. 2021

Mayo Clinic says the shunt system is a long, flexible tube with a valve that keeps fluid in the brain flowing properly. —Alexandra Del Rosario, Los Angeles Times, 2 June 2023

Cannon further explained that his and mom Alyssa Scott’s primary focus from then on was the 2-month-old’s quality of life, from letting the doctors put a shunt in to drain the fluid from his brain to deciding to forgo further, more aggressive treatment like chemotherapy. —Glenn Rowley, Billboard, 14 Dec. 2022

If a trial of relieving pressure by removing fluid from the brain is effective at improving symptoms, a shunt is then placed. —Dr. Keith Roach, oregonlive, 26 Jan. 2023

Roloff's wife, Tori, 31, posted on Instagram about the 32-year-old's emergency shunt revision Thursday, writing that her husband is doing well and recovering. —Sara Netzley, EW.com, 10 Feb. 2023

The doctors at Bridgeport put a shunt into his skull, draining the fluid that was putting pressure on his brainstem. —Ed Stannard, Hartford Courant, 27 Feb. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, to move suddenly, turn away, evade, perhaps from past participle of shonen

First Known Use

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Noun

1842, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

shunt

1 of 2 verb

ˈshənt 

1

: to turn off to one side or out of the way : shift

2

: to switch (as a train) from one track to another

shunter noun

shunt

2 of 2 noun

: a method or device for turning or pushing aside

especially : a conductor joining two points in an electrical circuit so as to form a path through which a portion of the current may pass

Medical Definition

shunt

1 of 2 transitive verb

ˈshənt 

: to divert by or as if by a shunt

especially : to divert (blood or other bodily fluid) from one part to another by a surgical shunt

shunt

2 of 2 noun

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

2

a

: 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