shunt

verb

\ ˈshənt

shunted; shunting; shunts

Definition of shunt

(Entry 1 of 2)

transitive verb

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

intransitive verb

1 : to move to the side

2 : to travel back and forth shunted between the two towns

shunt

noun

Definition 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

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Examples of shunt in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

China’s largest search engine Baidu Inc. has been shunted off the list of the country’s top five most valuable internet companies once again, this time by e-commerce firm Pinduoduo Inc., whose market cap surpassed Baidu’s at close on Thursday. — Fortune, "Trump’s Trade War with China is about to Hit Home," 31 Aug. 2019 And the stations in Detroit and Buffalo were shunted a few crucial kilometres away from downtown—enough to cut them off from the lifeblood of their cities. — Edward Carr, 1843, "We apologise for the decay," 29 Aug. 2019 To undercut these racist beliefs, films have had to shunt characters into a rigid binary that insists on America as the powerful redeeming force for an Asia marked by excess, authoritarianism, and a hidebound tradition. — Zoë Hu, The New Republic, "Crazy Sad Asians," 27 Aug. 2019 And that what gets shunted aside, in favor of the latest shiny object, might be the most important of all. — Margaret Sullivan, Washington Post, "Mixing troubling policy and loony distraction, Trump tries to get away with media madness," 23 Aug. 2019 Progressives who had railed against trade pacts for years felt shunted aside in the Clinton administration, as pro-trade Democrats brought China into the World Trade Organization and finished NAFTA, a trade deal begun by President George Bush. — New York Times, "Democrats’ 2020 Problem: How to Be Tougher on Trade Than Trump," 10 Aug. 2019 Having dazzled for Southampton as a teenager, the England international had struggled to fully establish himself in Arsenal's team, eventually being shunted into a slot at wing back, leading to him decide that his future lay elsewhere. — SI.com, "6 Players That Will Be Like New Signings for Liverpool Next Season," 8 July 2019 And even that is an abstraction that shunts aside various political pressures that inexorably will be felt and incorporated. — Benjamin Zycher, National Review, "The Confusions of the ‘Conservative’ Carbon Tax," 8 July 2019 Plenty of other airports have shunted Uber and Lyft pickups away from the curb, including in Nashville; Austin, Texas; and Atlanta, and at LaGuardia. — Carolyn Said, SFChronicle.com, "Ride-hail revamp at SFO — new spot designated for pickups," 5 June 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

One of the best weapons against it in recent years has been implants known as aqueous shunts or glaucoma drainage devices. — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "The Latest Glaucoma Treatment Could Be Magnets In Your Eyes," 13 Nov. 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," 12 Oct. 2018 Drew told the news outlet that Matthew is improving but will need a new shunt before they are sent home. — Alexandria Hein, Fox News, "Parents of baby misdiagnosed with terminal brain condition in utero left fate 'in God's hands'," 28 Aug. 2018 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

These 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.

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Last Updated

14 Sep 2019

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Time Traveler for shunt

The first known use of shunt was in the 13th century

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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

\ ˈshənt

shunted; shunting

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

\ ˈshənt

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

noun

Medical 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