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shed

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noun

Synonym Chooser

How is the word shed different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of shed are cast, discard, junk, scrap, and slough. While all these words mean "to get rid of," shed and slough imply a throwing off of something both useless and encumbering and often suggest a consequent renewal of vitality or luster.

shed a bad habit
finally sloughed off the depression

When would cast be a good substitute for shed?

Although the words cast and shed have much in common, cast, especially when used with off, away, or out, implies a forceful rejection or repudiation.

cast off her friends

When is it sensible to use discard instead of shed?

While the synonyms discard and shed are close in meaning, discard implies the letting go or throwing away of something that has become useless or superfluous though often not intrinsically valueless.

discard old clothes

How do scrap and junk relate to one another, in the sense of shed?

Both scrap and junk imply throwing away or breaking up as worthless in existent form.

scrap all the old ways
would junk our educational system

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 shed
Verb
Adding in a shelving unit will make the most of the shed’s storage space. Clint Davis, People.com, 28 Aug. 2025 Noel and his family lived in a converted shed behind a home in the 3700 block of Wisteria Drive. Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 Aug. 2025
Noun
The leading causes are shedding skin and hair particles and lint from your towels or toilet paper. Ashlyn Needham, Southern Living, 5 Sep. 2025 From January through July, the federal government has shed 97,000 workers. Paul Davidson, USA Today, 5 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for shed
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shed
Verb
  • The pressure is always on the taker, the player standing, gulping, trying desperately not to unload their lunch onto the turf, preparing to do something theoretically simple — kick the ball into the net from 12 yards with only one opponent able to stop them.
    Nick Miller, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2025
  • Some overseas investors have also been unloading government bonds and rotating into Japanese equities , driving its stock markets to fresh highs, analysts who spoke to CNBC noted.
    Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 3 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • One of the images shared showed what appeared to be a makeshift hut surrounded by trees, while another showed a shelter, and one featured a tent and tarp, a gas bottle,a camping stove, and packs of what appeared to be alcohol.
    Becca Longmire, PEOPLE, 10 Sep. 2025
  • There are also several huts spread across the prairie.
    Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 9 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Kendall Jenner has ditched her clothes for multiple Calvin Klein underwear campaigns and has been working with the brand for years.
    Hedy Phillips, PEOPLE, 9 Sep. 2025
  • That's the general summary of the argument insider Robert Murray of FanSided made on Monday, when suggesting that the slugger could ditch Philadelphia for one of his former clubs.
    Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Dexter has borrowed Prater’s yacht to dump his body into the East River.
    Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2025
  • The season will detail 10 different cases, including a Las Vegas journalist ambushed outside his residence, a body dumped in a NYC tunnel, and a mission to discover the identity of a victim found in the East River.
    Giana Levy, Variety, 5 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • In Georgia, Beau and Emma moved from an uninsulated shack into a safe, modern home built by Habitat for Humanity volunteers.
    Jason Ma, Fortune, 7 Sep. 2025
  • Imagine smoky jerk chicken cooked to perfection on an open-flame at a roadside shack, beckoning you to stop by for a mouthwatering bite.
    Martie Bowser, Miami Herald, 5 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • According to a criminal complaint, Briceno, whom authorities said is an undocumented immigrant, used a firearm to shoot inside the doorway of the bar and then discarded the firearm, which law enforcement never recovered.
    Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 7 Sep. 2025
  • In mahjong, four players draw and discard tiles with different suits, numbers and Chinese characters.
    Jason Ma, Fortune, 7 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Many journalists don’t want to lose access and are subject to coercion and intimidation that can influence their reporting.
    Sean Durns, The Washington Examiner, 12 Sep. 2025
  • One side will win, and one side will lose.
    Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 12 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Kensett—former head chef at Storico, New York; Goldeneye, Jamaica; and The Fife Arms, Braemar—cooked outdoors on embers in a lean-to.
    Carlton Reid, Forbes.com, 25 Aug. 2025
  • In this case, the lean-to was reportedly formed by downed trees.
    Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 23 Apr. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Shed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shed. Accessed 12 Sep. 2025.

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