3 N‑PLURAL When you talk about someone's problems or responsibilities, you can say that they carry them on their shoulders . □ No one suspected the anguish he carried on his shoulders.
4 VERB If you shoulder the responsibility or the blame for something, you accept it. □ [V n] He has had to shoulder the responsibility of his father's mistakes.
5 VERB If you shoulder something heavy, you put it across one of your shoulders so that you can carry it more easily. □ [V n] The rest of the group shouldered their bags, gritted their teeth and set off.
6 VERB If you shoulder someone aside or if you shoulder your way somewhere, you push past people roughly using your shoulder. □ [V n with aside ] The policemen rushed past him, shouldering him aside. □ [V n prep/adv] She could do nothing to stop him as he shouldered his way into the house. □ [V + past ] He shouldered past Harlech and opened the door. [Also V + through ]
7 N‑VAR A shoulder is a joint of meat from the upper part of the front leg of an animal. □ …shoulder of lamb.
8 → see also cold shoulder , hard shoulder
9 PHRASE If someone offers you a shoulder to cry on or is a shoulder to cry on , they listen sympathetically as you talk about your troubles. □ Roland sometimes saw me as a shoulder to cry on.
10 PHRASE If you say that someone or something stands head and shoulders above other people or things, you mean that they are a lot better than them. □ The two candidates stood head and shoulders above the rest.
11 PHRASE If two or more people stand shoulder to shoulder , they are standing next to each other, with their shoulders touching. □ They fell into step, walking shoulder to shoulder with their heads bent against the rain.
12 PHRASE If people work or stand shoulder to shoulder , they work together in order to achieve something, or support each other. □ They could fight shoulder-to-shoulder against a common enemy.
13 a chip on one's shoulder → see chip
14 to rub shoulders with → see rub
shou lder-bag (shoulder-bags ) N‑COUNT A shoulder-bag is a bag that has a long strap so that it can be carried on a person's shoulder.
shou l|der blade (shoulder blades ) N‑COUNT Your shoulder blades are the two large, flat, triangular bones that you have in the upper part of your back, below your shoulders.
shou lder-hi gh ADJ [usu ADJ n] A shoulder-high object is as high as your shoulders. □ …a shoulder-high hedge. ● ADV [ADV after v] Shoulder-high is also an adverb. □ They picked up Oliver and carried him shoulder high into the garage.
shou lder-length ADJ [usu ADJ n] Shoulder-length hair is long enough to reach your shoulders.
shou l|der pad (shoulder pads ) N‑COUNT Shoulder pads are small pads that are put inside the shoulders of a jacket, coat, or other article of clothing in order to raise them.
shou l|der strap (shoulder straps )
1 N‑COUNT The shoulder straps on a piece of clothing such as a dress are two narrow straps that go over the shoulders.
2 N‑COUNT A shoulder strap on a bag is a long strap that you put over your shoulder to carry the bag.
shouldn't /ʃʊ d ə nt/ Shouldn't is the usual spoken form of 'should not'.
should've /ʃʊdəv/ Should've is the usual spoken form of 'should have', especially when 'have' is an auxiliary verb.
shout ◆◇◇ /ʃaʊ t/ (shouts , shouting , shouted )
1 VERB If you shout , you say something very loudly, usually because you want people a long distance away to hear you or because you are angry. □ [V ] He had to shout to make himself heard above the near gale-force wind. □ [V with quote] 'She's alive!' he shouted triumphantly. □ [V + for ] Andrew rushed out of the house, shouting for help. □ [V + at ] You don't have to shout at me. □ [V + at ] I shouted at mother to get the police. □ [V n] The driver managed to escape from the vehicle and shout a warning. [Also V that] ● N‑COUNT Shout is also a noun. □ [+ of ] The decision was greeted with shouts of protest from opposition MPs. □ I heard a distant shout.
2 PHRASE If you say that someone is in with a shout of achieving or winning something, you mean that they have a chance of achieving or winning it. [INFORMAL ] □ He knew he was in with a shout of making Craig Brown's squad for Japan.
▸ shout down PHRASAL VERB If people shout down someone who is trying to speak, they prevent that person from being heard by shouting at them. □ [V n P ] They shouted him down when he tried to explain his point of view. □ [V P n] There were scuffles when hecklers began to shout down the speakers.
▸ shout out PHRASAL VERB If you shout something out , you say it very loudly so that people can hear you clearly. □ [V P n] They shouted out the names of those detained. □ [V P with quote] I shouted out 'I'm OK'. □ [V n P ] I wanted to shout it out, let her know what I had overheard. [Also V P ]
shou t|ing match (shouting matches ) N‑COUNT A shouting match is an angry quarrel in which people shout at each other. □ [+ with ] We had a real shouting match with each other. [Also + between ]
shout|out /ʃaʊ taʊt/ (shoutouts ) N‑COUNT A shoutout is a public greeting to a named person, especially on the radio or on television. □ I just want to give a shoutout to my friends Bill and Jack.
shove /ʃʌ v/ (shoves , shoving , shoved )