as in knives
an instrument with a metal length that has a sharp edge for cutting
slashed at the prison guard with a shank he had secretly made from a scrap of metal
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of shanks
Think short ribs, oxtail, shanks, or even brisket point cut.
—
Kimberly Holland, Southern Living, 20 Feb. 2026
Lucrezia’s Regularly voted the region’s top Italian restaurant, Lucrezia’s serves housemade pasta, classic Italian appetizers, and braised lamb shanks and short ribs in a garden setting.
—Iona Brannon, Travel + Leisure, 21 Nov. 2025
Boos rain down as Jeremy Crawshaw shanks that punt off the side of his foot.
—Joe Nguyen, Denver Post, 6 Nov. 2025
Homemade knives, called shanks, are plentiful inside the prison, several inmates said.
—Kristine Phillips, IndyStar, 5 Nov. 2025
Some of my favorite cuts for braising include pork shoulder, beef brisket, short ribs, chicken thighs, and lamb shanks.
—Carole Kotkin, Miami Herald, 7 Oct. 2025
Lamb shanks are braised in Malbec till they can be shredded and made into croquettes with provoleta cheese and a yogurt mint sauce.
—John Mariani, Forbes.com, 17 Sep. 2025
After a couple shanks, Sanchez launches one on line.
—Brian Hamilton, New York Times, 27 Aug. 2025
Frozen lamb shanks were improperly thawed in the prep sink without running water.
—Sacbee.com, 8 Aug. 2025
Kimberly Holland, Southern Living, 20 Feb. 2026
Lucrezia’s Regularly voted the region’s top Italian restaurant, Lucrezia’s serves housemade pasta, classic Italian appetizers, and braised lamb shanks and short ribs in a garden setting.
—Iona Brannon, Travel + Leisure, 21 Nov. 2025
Boos rain down as Jeremy Crawshaw shanks that punt off the side of his foot.
—Joe Nguyen, Denver Post, 6 Nov. 2025
Homemade knives, called shanks, are plentiful inside the prison, several inmates said.
—Kristine Phillips, IndyStar, 5 Nov. 2025
Some of my favorite cuts for braising include pork shoulder, beef brisket, short ribs, chicken thighs, and lamb shanks.
—Carole Kotkin, Miami Herald, 7 Oct. 2025
Lamb shanks are braised in Malbec till they can be shredded and made into croquettes with provoleta cheese and a yogurt mint sauce.
—John Mariani, Forbes.com, 17 Sep. 2025
After a couple shanks, Sanchez launches one on line.
—Brian Hamilton, New York Times, 27 Aug. 2025
Frozen lamb shanks were improperly thawed in the prep sink without running water.
—Sacbee.com, 8 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shanks
Noun
-
Every day, a steady stream of items gets left behind at Transportation Security Administration checkpoints in airports across the world, from pocket knives to headphones to peanut butter and oversized bottles of perfume.—
Iona Brannon,
Travel + Leisure,
20 Feb. 2026
-
A couple of people pulled out knives and slipped over to puncture leather hoses pumping water to put out the fire.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
19 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Yamamoto reached into his five-pitch repertoire Saturday, mixing in six fastballs, eight splitters, five sinkers, four cutters, four curveballs and three sliders.—
Jack Vita,
Los Angeles Times,
21 Feb. 2026
-
Cable-cutters can tune into the performance through a variety of Live TV streamers with access to NBC such as DirecTV, Hulu + Live TV and Sling TV (in select markets).—
Anna Tingley,
Variety,
8 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Shanks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shanks. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
