shelf
shelf Lexical Profile
shelf Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A flat, rigid piece of wood, metal, glass, or other material attached to a wall or built into a piece of furniture, providing a surface to store or display objects.
"She carefully arranged her collection of antique books on the top shelf of the bookcase."
A projecting horizontal ledge of rock or ice extending from a cliff or mountain face.
"The weary climbers rested on a narrow rock shelf before attempting the final vertical ascent."
A shallow, submerged plain of land forming the gently sloping border of a continent before the steep drop-off into the deep ocean.
"Marine biologists discovered a thriving coral ecosystem running along the edge of the continental shelf."
• Rhymes for shelf
Word Origin & Etymology
From Middle English 'schelfe', derived from Old English 'scylf' (meaning 'peak', 'crag', or 'shelf'), of Germanic origin. It is related to the Old Norse word 'skjálf' (bench).