shave
shave Lexical Profile
shave Game Scores & Validity
• verb
To cut hair from the face or body close to the skin using a razor or shaver.
"He wakes up fifteen minutes early every morning to shower and shave before commuting to the office."
To cut thin slices or fine shavings from the surface of wood, food, or another solid material.
"The carpenter had to shave a fraction of an inch off the bottom of the door so it would close properly."
To reduce a price, time, score, or amount by a small margin.
"Upgrading the server hardware helped the engineering team shave several seconds off the application's loading time."
To pass very close to an object, brushing or nearly grazing its surface.
"The sailboat managed to shave the rocky headland without damaging its hull."
• noun
An act or instance of cutting hair close to the skin with a razor.
"He stopped by the classic barbershop on the corner for a quick trim and a clean shave."
A narrow escape or a very small margin by which conflict, failure, or disaster is avoided (typically used in 'a close shave').
"Missing that icy patch on the highway was a remarkably close shave for all the passengers."
A woodworking hand tool fitted with a sharp blade and two handles, used for paring, scraping, or smoothing wood surfaces.
"The cabinetmaker used a curved shave to shape the wooden chair legs smoothly."
Word Nuance & Usage
The regular past participle 'shaved' is standard in verb phrases (e.g., 'he has shaved his beard'), whereas the older irregular participle 'shaven' is now primarily used as an attributive adjective or in compounds (e.g., 'a clean-shaven face', 'a shaven head').
• Rhymes for shave
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
From Old English 'scafan', meaning 'to scrape, pare, or polish,' derived from the Proto-Germanic root '*skaban', which is also related to 'shabby'.