1
: one that shuts
2
: a usually movable cover or screen for a window or door
3
: a mechanical device that limits the passage of light
especially
: a camera component that allows light to enter by opening and closing an aperture
4
: the movable louvers in a pipe organ by which the swell box is opened
shuttered; shuttering; shutters
1
: to close by or as if by shutters
corporations shuttering their production plants
2
: to furnish with shutters
Examples of shutter in a Sentence
Verb
They locked the doors and shuttered the windows.
They declared bankruptcy and shuttered the store.
Recent Examples on the Web
Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 12 Mar. 2026
From Earth’s vantage point—right along the faraway magnetar’s equator—the wobbling disk acted like a film projector’s shutter, periodically occluding our view of the dead star supercharging SN 2024afav.
—Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 11 Mar. 2026
Los Angeles Times, 13 Mar. 2026
Since 2012, more than 20 community hospitals in the Chicago area have shuttered their pediatric units, according to a previous application for changes filed with the state board by Lurie.
—Lisa Schencker, Chicago Tribune, 13 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shutter
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Noun
During the trials, the webcams were blocked with a pair of plastic shutters until the timer started, to ensure that the machine didn’t get a head start.
—Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 12 Mar. 2026
From Earth’s vantage point—right along the faraway magnetar’s equator—the wobbling disk acted like a film projector’s shutter, periodically occluding our view of the dead star supercharging SN 2024afav.
—Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 11 Mar. 2026
Verb
Phillips 66 and Valero have already announced plans to shutter major refineries in Los Angeles and Benicia.
—Los Angeles Times, 13 Mar. 2026
Since 2012, more than 20 community hospitals in the Chicago area have shuttered their pediatric units, according to a previous application for changes filed with the state board by Lurie.
—Lisa Schencker, Chicago Tribune, 13 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shutter
Cite this Entry
“Shutter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shutter. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
shutter
1 of 2 noun
shut·ter
ˈshət-ər 
1
: a movable cover for a window that swings on hinges like a door
2
: a device in a camera that opens to allow light to enter when a picture is taken
shutter
2 of 2 verb
: to close with or by shutters
kept the house shuttered
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