shuttle

noun shut·tle \ ˈshə-tᵊl \

Updated on: 20 Apr 2018

Definition of shuttle

1 a : a device used in weaving for passing the thread of the weft between the threads of the warp

b : a spindle-shaped device holding the thread in tatting, knotting, or netting

c : a sliding thread holder for the lower thread of a sewing machine that carries the lower thread through a loop of the upper thread to make a stitch

2 : shuttlecock

3 a : a going back and forth regularly over an often short route by a vehicle

b (1) : an established route used in a shuttle

(2) : a vehicle used in a shuttle

a shuttle bus

c : space shuttle

—

shuttleless

adjective

See shuttle defined for English-language learners

See shuttle defined for kids

Examples of shuttle in a Sentence

A shuttle takes people from the parking lot to the airport.

Recent Examples of shuttle from the Web

Businesses including Apple and Google have encouraged their employees to take shuttle buses and public transportation, or bike to work instead of drive.

— wendy lee, San Francisco Chronicle, "Fix for crucial, clogged Silicon Valley freeway is stuck in the slow lane," 14 Apr. 2018
Currently, passengers and airport employees who take transit to the airport must disembark from the Metro Green Line at the Aviation/LAX station and transfer to shuttle buses.

— laura j. nelson, latimes.com, "City Council approves long-awaited people mover to LAX," 11 Apr. 2018
Instead, TriMet will run shuttle buses between the Goose Hollow and Galleria SW 10th Avenue stations.

— andrew theen, OregonLive.com, "TriMet plans 6-day MAX construction project, closures, near Providence Park," 9 Apr. 2018
The closest light rail station, on 65th Street, is still a mile walk from campus—an issue that university and city transportation officials are hoping can be solved by driverless, robot shuttle buses.

— michael mcgough, sacbee, "Rainy weather pushes back Sac State construction project, to commuters’ frustration | The Sacramento Bee," 24 Mar. 2018
Metro will be operating free shuttle buses from Seattle Center to downtown Seattle after the march ends.

— paige cornwell, The Seattle Times, "How it unfolded: Seattle’s March For Our Lives," 24 Mar. 2018
Parking There are four offsite park-and-shuttle areas offering free rides to and from the Parkland march.

— phillip valys, Sun-Sentinel.com, "All you need to know about Parkland's March for Our Lives rally," 22 Mar. 2018
Overflow parking and shuttle bus from the San Dieguito Academy parking lot at Nardo and Melba roads.

— linda mcintosh, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Where to go Easter egg hunting in North County," 22 Mar. 2018
Ford has since reorganized the unit, which has employees in both Michigan and Silicon Valley, to focus on a handful of core areas, such as connectivity and Ford’s van-shuttle service Chariot, and named new leadership.

— christina rogers, WSJ, "Two Ford Executives, Hired From Silicon Valley, to Exit," 21 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'shuttle.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of shuttle

Middle English shittle, shutle, from Old English scutel, scytel dart; akin to Old Norse skutill bolt, Old English scēotan to shoot — more at shoot

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

shuttle

verb

Definition of shuttle

shuttled; shuttling play \ˈshət-liŋ, ˈshə-tᵊl-iŋ\

transitive verb

1 : to cause to move or travel back and forth frequently

2 : to transport in, by, or as if by a shuttle

shuttled them to school

intransitive verb

1 : to move or travel back and forth frequently

2 : to move by or as if by a shuttle

See shuttle defined for English-language learners

Examples of shuttle in a Sentence

We shuttled between the city and the country all summer.
A bus shuttled people from the parking lot to the dock.

Recent Examples of shuttle from the Web

Like the Eagle Creek Cargo Hauler, the Quest Rolling Duffel can be shuttled around via a pair of padded backpack straps, or on a pair of chunky wheels.

— seamus bellamy, USA TODAY, "The 5 best suitcases for every type of traveler," 11 Apr. 2018
According to the memo, Mr. Rincón was shuttled between a series of Mr. Guzmán’s properties, where he was tortured and questioned by Mr. Guzmán’s cousin, Juan Guzmán Rocha.

— alan feuer, New York Times, "7 Tons of Cocaine in Jalapeño Cans: The Evidence Against El Chapo," 10 Apr. 2018
In the quiet hallways of the Capitol, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., shuttled between McConnell's and Schumer's offices, trying to secure support for a spending bill to last through Feb. 8.

— the washington post, OregonLive.com, "Vote on funding bill fails in Senate, virtually assuring government shutdown," 19 Jan. 2018
Iammarino said county employees will be able to park at the U.S. Steel Yard where the crew will be based and shuttled to the building.

— craig lyons, Post-Tribune, "Fox to film pilot episode of new legal drama at Gary courthouse," 22 Mar. 2018
Boersma worked at the Alabama Farmers' Cooperative in Decatur shuttling trailers from the storage yard to the warehouse, according to the Department of Justice.

— ashley remkus, AL.com, "Alabama man pleads guilty to trying to sell teen to Tennessee sex trafficker for $8,000," 19 Mar. 2018
By adjusting the energy of the qubit, researchers can shuttle its quantum states into the resonator, so that a zero-and-one state of the qubit can be stored as a state of the resonator in which a photon is both present and absent.

— adrian cho, Science | AAAS, "Weird vibrations poised to control quantum computers," 14 Mar. 2018
Lamb shuttled back to a nearby campaign office after knocking on 27 doors to speak to nearly 40 young volunteers, many of them in high school.

— CBS News, "In PA special election, GOP candidate struggles with campaign basics," 10 Mar. 2018
The Stelvio system defaults to sending 100 percent of the power to the rear wheels in most situations but can shuttle up to 60 percent of it to the fronts when rear slip is detected like in snow or rain.

— rich ceppos, Car and Driver, "2018 Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio," 3 Mar. 2018

First Known Use of shuttle

1550

SHUTTLE Defined for English Language Learners

shuttle

noun

Definition of shuttle for English Language Learners

: a vehicle that travels back and forth between places
: a pointed tool that is used to weave cloth by pulling a thread from side to side across other threads

shuttle

verb

Definition of shuttle for English Language Learners

: to travel back and forth between places
: to bring (people) back and forth between places

SHUTTLE Defined for Kids

shuttle

noun shut·tle \ ˈshə-tᵊl \

Definition of shuttle for Students

1 : an instrument used in weaving to carry the thread back and forth from side to side through the threads that run lengthwise

2 : a vehicle (as a bus or train) that goes back and forth over a short route

3 : space shuttle

shuttle

verb

Definition of shuttle for Students

shuttled; shuttling

: to move or bring back and forth rapidly or often

The ferry shuttled travelers across the river.

Learn More about shuttle

See words that rhyme with shuttle Spanish Central: Translation of shuttle Nglish: Translation of shuttle for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of shuttle for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about shuttle

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shuttle

Definition of shuttle

shuttleless

Examples of shuttle in a Sentence

Recent Examples of shuttle from the Web

Origin and Etymology of shuttle

shuttle

Definition of shuttle

Examples of shuttle in a Sentence

Recent Examples of shuttle from the Web

First Known Use of shuttle

SHUTTLE Defined for English Language Learners

shuttle

Definition of shuttle for English Language Learners

shuttle

Definition of shuttle for English Language Learners

SHUTTLE Defined for Kids

shuttle

Definition of shuttle for Students

shuttle

Definition of shuttle for Students

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