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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
  • The Tropical Ocean looks like a Caribbean hideaway with huts which are built from bamboo and have thatched roofs.
    Caroline Reid, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
  • Just down the beach from the restaurant, a row of waterfront fishing huts called Pueblo de los Pescadores had long been at the heart of local nightlife, offering DJs and sunset views, until a fire in 2021.
    The New York Times News Service Syndicate, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • Those agreements provide a significant source of revenue for Google and broad access to its services, although the company had proposed ditching those contracts as a potential remedy in the case.
    Lisa Eadicicco, CNN Money, 2 Sep. 2025
  • Dual Front mode Rainbow Six Siege ditches turn-taking to let players attack and defend simultaneously.
    Griff Griffin, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 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
  • Tens of thousands live in tin shacks, lacking basic amenities, such as coal for cooking and heating their homes.
    Brittney Melton, NPR, 28 Aug. 2025
  • But, just when Ivy’s crab shack begins to boom with buzz and success, Theo’s latest architectural venture comes crashing down.
    Katie Song, Variety, 26 Aug. 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
  • Ayman Soliman, a former hospital chaplain, has been detained by immigration authorities since July after losing his asylum status.
    Victoria Moorwood, Cincinnati Enquirer, 5 Sep. 2025
  • The water pressure then causes the vehicle to rise and slide on a thin layer of water between the tires and the road, making the driver lose control.
    CA Weather Bot, Sacbee.com, 5 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 9 Sep. 2025.

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