shimmer 
from wiiita, etc., shade, glimmer: see shim 1 , 
nh i me.'] To shine with a veiled, tremulous 
light; gleam faintly. 
Twinkling faint, and distant far, 
Shimmers through mist each planet star. 
Scott, L. of L. jr., i. 17. 
The beauty that shimmers in the yellow afternoons of 
October who ever could clutch it? 
Emerson, Misc., p. 24. 
shimmer 1 (shim'er), . [Ml). wlu-HH-i: xchcmel 
= D. ncliemcr = G. .-ichiiniiii-r = Sw. xkimmcr ; 
from the verb.] A faint or veiled and tremu- 
lous gleam or shining. 
The silver lamps . . . diffused ... a trembling twi- 
light or seeming shimmer through the quiet apartment. 
Scott. 
shimmer 2 (shim'er), . [< shim? + -er-.~\ A 
workman in cabinet-work or other fine wood- 
work who fills up cracks or makes parts fit by 
the insertion of shims or thin pieces. 
shimmering (shim'er-ing), ii. [< ME. schimi-r- 
ini/r, nhcmcriiiij (D. sehemering = MLG. schemer- 
inye, shimmering, = Dan. skumring, twilight) ; 
verbal n. of shimmer 1 , v.~\ A faint and tremu- 
lous gleaming or shining. 
shimming (shim'ing), n. [Verbal n. of sliim 2 , 
r."] The insertion of thin pieces of material to 
make two parts fit, or to fill out cracks or un- 
even places ; also, the thin pieces so used. 
Shimming has been used in fitting on car-wheels when 
the wheel-seat of the axle was a little too small. 
Car-Builder's Diet. 
shim-plow (shim'plou), . See under7>/O!P. 
shin 1 (shin), n. [< ME. shinne, schynne, shine, 
shync, schine, seliene, seine (pi. shinties, shines), 
< AS. scina, scyne, shin (scin-ban, shin-bone), 
= MD. schene, D. scheen = MLG. schciie, shin, 
shin-bone, := OHG. scina, scena, sciena, MHG. 
schine, schin, G. schiene, a narrow slice of metal 
or wood, a splint, iron band, in OHG. also a 
needle, prickle (MHG. schinebein, G. schienbein, 
shin-bone), = Sw. skena, a plate, streak, tire 
(sken-ben, shin-bone), = Dan. skinne, a splint, 
band, tire, rail (skinne-been, shin-bone); orig. 
appar. a thin piece, a splint of bone or metal. 
Hence (< OHG.) It. schiena, the backbone, = 
Sp. esquena, spine of fishes, = Pr. enquina, es- 
quena = OF. eschine, F. echine, the backbone, 
the chine ; It. sehiniera, a leg-piece : see chine 2 , 
which is thus a doublet of shin 1 . Perhaps akin 
to skin: see skin.'] 1. The front part of the 
human leg from the knee to the ankle, along 
which the sharp edge of the shin-bone or tibia 
may be felt beneath the skin. 
And Shame shrapeth his clothes and his shynes wassheth. 
Piers Plowman (B), xi. 423. 
But gret harm it was, as it thoughte me, 
That on his shinne (var. schyne) a mormal hadde he. 
Chaucer, Gen. Prol. to 0. T., 1. 386. 
I shall ne'er be ware of my own wit till I break my 
shins against it. Shak., As you Like it, ii. 4. 60. 
Mugford led the conversation to the noble lord so fre- 
quently that Philip madly kicked my shins under the ta- 
ble. Thackeray, Philip, xxi. 
Hence 2. The shin-bone. 3. The lower leg; 
the shank: as, stshinof beef. 4. Inonii/7<.,the 
hard or scaly part of the leg of a bird ; the shank. 
See sharp-shinned. [An incorrect use.] 5. In 
entont., the tibia, or fourth joint of the leg. Also 
called shank. See cut under coxa. 6. A fish- 
plate. 
shin 1 (shin), v. ; pret. and pp. shinned, ppr. shin- 
ning. [< shin 1 , .] L intrans. 1. To use the 
shins in climbing ; climb by hugging with arms 
and legs: with up: as, to shin up a tree. 
Nothing for it but the tree ; so Tom laid his bones to it, 
shinning up as fast as he could. 
T. Uuyhes, Tom Brown at Rugby, i. 9. 
2. To go afoot; walk: as, to shin along; to 
shin across the field. 
I was up in a second and thinning down the hill. 
Mark Twain, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, iv. 
II. trans. 1. To climb by grasping with the 
arms and legs and working or pulling one's self 
up: as, to shin a tree. 2. To kick on the shins. 
A ring ! give him room, or he'll shin you stand clear ! 
Barham, Ingoldsby Legends, II. 351. 
Shin 2 (shin), . [Chin. -Jap.] A god, or the 
gods collectively; spirit, or the spirits; with a 
capital, the term used by many Protestant mis- 
sionaries in China, and universally among Prot- 
estant Christians in Japan, for the Supreme 
Being; God. (See kami.) Sometimes the ad- 
jective chin, ' true,' is prefixed in Chinese. See 
Shangti and Shinto. 
shinbaldet, . [ME., also scht/nbawde; < shin 1 
+ -balde, appar. connected with Weld, protect.] 
In medieval armor, same as greaves 1 . 
5573 
shin-bone (shin'bon), n. [< ME. scltyiibtmr, 
ykinbon, <.AK.sciiili(iii (= D.nrlit'fiibi'rii = MLG. 
schenebein = MHG. xchiiirbi-in, G. m-liimbiin = 
Sw. xkenben = Dan. skinnebeen). < HCIIHI, shin, + 
ban, bone: see shin 1 and bone 1 .'] The tibia. See 
cuts under eras, fibula, and skeleton. 
I find I am but hurt 
In the leg, a dangerous kick on the shin-bone. 
Beau, and Fl., Honest Man's Fortune, ii. 
shin-boot (shin'bot), n. A horse-boot with a 
long leather shield, used to protect the shin of 
a horse from injury by interference. 
shindig (shin'dig), n. [Cf. shindy.] A ball 
or dance ; especially, a dance attended with a 
shindy or much uproar and rowdyism. [West- 
ern U. S.] 
shindlet (shin'dl), n. [Early mod. E. also xhin- 
del; < ME. "shindel, found only in the corrupted 
form shingle (> mod. E. shinale), prob. < AS. 
"scindel (which, however, with the other LG. 
forms, is not recorded, the notion being gener- 
ally expressed by AS. tigel, etc., tile, also of L. 
origin) = OHG. scintila, MHG. G. schindel, a 
shingle, splint (cf. Serv. shindra, also irimltt, 
Bohem. sliindel, Upper Serbian shindsliel = 
Little Russ. shyngla = Hung, zsindel = Turk. 
sliindere, a shingle, < G.), < LL. scintliila, a 
shingle, wooden tile, a dim. form, prob. orig. 
identical with *scidula, written schedula, a leaf 
of paper (> ult. E. schedule), dim. of L. seiila, 
written scheda, a strip of papyrus, schidia, a 
chip, splinter, < scindere, split, cleave : see scis- 
sion and shidc, and cf. schedule, where the ir- 
regularities in this group of L. words, due to 
confusion with the Gr. ax'i&, etc., are explain- 
ed. The LL. ML. scindula, a shingle (cf. Gr. 
oxivda/.ap6<;, a shingle), may, however, be merely 
a later form, simulating scindere, split, of L. 
scandula (> It. dial, scandola = F. cchandole), a 
shingle, which is usually referred to scandere, 
climb (in ref. to the 'steps' which the over- 
lapping shingles form), but which is more prob. 
a perverted form of scindula, which in turn was 
prob. orig. "sciiluln. Hence, by a perversion 
which took place in ME., the now exclusive 
form shingle 1 , q. v.] 1. A shingle. Minsheit. 
The bourds or shindies of the wild oke called robur be of 
all others simply the best. Holland, tr. of Pliny, xvi. 10. 
2. A roofing-slate. 
shindlet (shin'dl), v. t. [< shinale, n. Cf. shin- 
gle 1 , v."] To cover or roof with shingles. Hol- 
land. 
shindy (shin'di), n. ; pi. shindies (-diz). [Cf. 
shinty, shinny, shindig.] 1 . The game of shinny, 
hockey, or bandy-ball. [U. S.] 2. A row, dis- 
turbance, or rumpus: as, to kick up a shindy. 
[Slang.] 
You may hear them for miles kicking up their wild 
shindy. Barham, Ingoldsby Legends, II. 101. 
I've married her. And I know there will be an awful 
shindy at home. Thackeray, Pendennis, Ixxii. 
We usen't to mind a bit of a shindy in those times; if a 
boy was killed, why, we said it was " his luck," and that it 
couldn't be helped. 
Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Halt, Ireland, I. 429. 
shine 1 (shin), v. ; pret. and pp. shone, ppr. shin- 
ing (shined, pret. and pp., is obsolete or vulgar). 
[< ME.sfeiwew, schincn,sckynen (pret. shon,shoon, 
schoon, schon, schone, schane, pp. sliinen), < AS. 
scinan (pret. scan, pi. scinon, pp. scinen) = OS. 
skinan = OFries. skina, schina = D. schynen = 
MLG. schinen, LG. schinen = OHG. scinan, MHG. 
schinen, G. scheinen = Icel. skina = Sw. skina = 
Dan. skinne = Goth, skeinan, shine ; with pres- 
ent-formative -na, < Teut. / ski, shine, whence 
also ult. E. shim 1 , shime, shimmer 1 , etc., also E. 
(obs.) s/iire 2 , and sheer 1 , bright, etc.; prob. akin 
to Gr. mid, a shadow (whence ult. E. squirrel), 
axipov, sunshade, parasol.] I. intrans. 1. To 
send forth or give out light or brightness, lit- 
erally or figuratively : as, the sun shines by day, 
the moon by night. 
But ever the sone shyneth ryght cler and hole. 
Torkington, Diarie of Eng. Travel!, p. 21. 
After which long night, the Sunne of Righteousnesse 
shone unto the Syrians. Pmchai, Pilgrimage, p. 86. 
If the Moon shine they use but few Torches, if not, the 
Church is full of light. Dampier, Voyages, I. 127. 
Ye talk of Fires which shine but never burn ; 
In this cold World they'll hardly serve our Turn. 
Cowley, The Mistress, Answer to the Platonicks. 
2. To present a bright appearance; glow: 
gleam; glitter. 
His heed was balled, that schon as eny glas. 
Chaucer, Gen. Prol to C. T. (ed. Morris), 1. 198. 
A dragon, . . . 
Whose scherdes shinen as the sonne. 
Gou'er, Conf. Amant., III. 68. 
shine 
His eyes, like glow-worms, xtn'iit' when he doth fret. 
Shak., Venus and Adonis, 1. 621. 
The walls of red marble shined like fire, interlaid with 
gold, resembling lightning. J'urchas, Pilgrimage, p. 457. 
3. To beam forth; show itself clearly or con- 
spicuously; be noticeably prominent or bril- 
liant. 
In this gyfte schi/nex contemplacyone. 
Ilaiiipoh, Prose Treatises (E. E. T. S.), p. 12. 
Her face was veil'd, yet to my fancied sight 
Love, sweetness, goodness, in her person shined 
So clear as in no face with more delight. 
Milton, Sonnets, xviii. 
4. To excel ; be eminent, distinguished, or con- 
spicuous: as, to shine in society, or in conver- 
sation; to shine in letters. 
This proceeds from an ambition to excel, or, as the term 
is, to shine in company. Steele, Taller, No. 244. 
He bade me teach thee all the ways of war, 
To shine in councils, and in camps to dare. 
Pope, Iliad, ix. 571. 
5f. To present a splendid or dazzling appear- 
ance; make a brave show. 
He made me mad 
To see him shine so brisk and smell so sweet. 
Shak., IHen. IV., i. 3. 54. 
Some put on the gay green robes, 
And some put on the brown ; 
But Janet put on the scarlet robes, 
To shine foremost through the town. 
Fair Janet (Child's Ballads, 1 1. 90). 
To cause (or make) the face to shine*, to be propitious. 
The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious 
unto thee. Num. vi. 25. 
To Bhine up to, to attempt to make one's self pleasing 
to, especially as a possible suitor ; cultivate the admira- 
tion and preference of : as, to shine up to a girl. [Low, 
U. S. ] 
Mother was always hecterin' me about gettin' married, 
and wantin' I should shine tip to this likely girl and that, 
and I puttin' her off with a joke. 
The Congregationalist, Feb. 4, 1888. 
= Syn. 1. To radiate, glow. Shine differs from the words 
compared under glare, ., in that it generally stands for a 
steady radiation or emission of light. It is with different 
thoughts of the light of the fixed stars that we say that 
they shine, sparkle, gleam, or glitter. 
II. trans. To cause to shine, (a) To direct or 
throw the light of in such a way as to illuminate some- 
thing ; flash : as, the policeman shmie his lantern up the 
alley. (6) To put a gloss or polish on, as by brushing or 
scouring : as, to shine shoes ; to shine a stove. [Colloq,] 
And thou hintest withal that thou fain would'st shine 
. . . These bulgy old boots of mine. 
C. 5. Calverley, The Arab. 
To shine deer, to attract them with fire by night for the 
purpose of killing them. The light shining on their eyes 
makes them visible in the darkness to the hunter. See 
jack-lamp, 2. 
shine 1 (shin), n. [= OS. scin, skin = D. shijn 
= OHG. scin, schin, MHG. schin, G. schein = 
Icel. skin = Sw. sken = Dan. skin; from the 
verb.] 1. Light; illumination. 
The Earth her store, the Stars shall leave their measures, 
The Sun his shine. 
Sylvester, tr. of Du Bartas's Weeks, It., The Handy-Crafts. 
Ashtaroth . . . 
Now sits not girt with tapers' holy shine. 
Milton, Nativity, 1. 202. 
2. Sunshine ; hence, fair weather. 
Be it fair or foul, or rain or shine. Dryden. 
Their vales in misty shadows deep, 
Their rugged peaks in shine. 
Whittier, The Hilltop. 
3. Sheen; brilliancy; luster; gloss. 
The shine of armour bright. 
Sir J. Harington, tr. of Ariosto, xxxvii. 15. (Nares ) 
He that has inured his eyes to that divine splendour 
which results from the beauty of holiness is not dazzled 
with the glittering thine of gold. 
Decay of Christian Piety. 
4. Brightness; splendor; irradiation. 
Her device, within a ring of clouds, a heart with thine 
about it. B. Jonson, Cynthia's Revels, v. S. 
That same radiant shine 
That lustre wherewith Nature's nature decked 
Our intellectual part. 
Marston, Scourge of Villanie, vll. 8. 
This addition 
Of virtue is above all shine of state, 
And will draw more admirers. 
Shirley, Hyde Park, v. 1. 
5. A fancy; liking: as, to take a shine to a per- 
son. [Low, U. S.] 6. A disturbance; a row; 
a rumpus; a shindy. [Slang.] 
I'm not partial to gentlefolks coming into my place, . . . 
there 'd be a pretty shine made if I was to go a wisiting 
them, I think. Dickens, Bleak House, Ivii. 
7. A trick ; a prank : as, to cut up shines. [Low, 
She needn't think she's goin' to come round me with 
any o' her shines, going over to Deacon Badger's with ly- 
ing stories about me. H. B. Stove, Oldtown, p. 236. 
To take the shine out of, to cast into the shade ; out- 
shine ; eclipse. [Slang.] 
