shrug

1 of 2

verb

ˈshrəg How to pronounce shrug (audio)
 especially Southern  ˈsrəg
shrugged; shrugging

intransitive verb

: to raise or draw in the shoulders especially to express aloofness, indifference, or uncertainty

transitive verb

: to lift or contract (the shoulders) especially to express aloofness, indifference, or uncertainty

shrug

2 of 2

noun

1
: an act of shrugging
2
: a woman's small waist-length or shorter jacket

Examples of shrug in a Sentence

Verb I asked if he wanted to go out to dinner, and he just shrugged. He just shrugged his shoulders.
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
West led the jack of spades, and declarer won, took the ace of trumps, shrugged and led a club to finesse with dummy’s king. Frank Stewart, The Mercury News, 10 Mar. 2024 Omar shrugged and swigged from the jug, letting water run down his chin and onto his neck, down his flat stomach. Jared Lemus, The Atlantic, 9 Mar. 2024 An ordinary company might have shrugged it off and quietly fixed next year’s calendar. Heather Newman, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2024 Don’t shrug it off, saying this is for others to worry about. Ken Silverstein, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024 Cahill shrugged and repositioned the boulder with a percussive thunk. Ben Goldfarb, Smithsonian Magazine, 13 Feb. 2024 When Kelton confronted him, the comic apologized and shrugged. Eric Spitznagel, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Jan. 2024 But then, shrugging the sounds off as fireworks, everyone stood back up. Laura Bauer, Kansas City Star, 16 Feb. 2024 Abrams said on Entertainment Tonight, shrugging dramatically. Danielle Sinay, Glamour, 5 Feb. 2024
Noun
In almost any field beside men’s sports, this might be met with a shrug. Billy Witz, New York Times, 8 Mar. 2024 Now, eight years later, after Utah passed a similar bill on Monday, the reaction beyond the state’s borders appears to be more of a shrug. Matt Lavietes, NBC News, 3 Feb. 2024 But his departure to Oregon elicited mostly shrugs because Garbers simply outperformed him. Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 28 Dec. 2023 There are no shocks in Culprits, as every ostensible reveal, every double-cross, every seemingly dead character proving to still be alive drew a shrug from me. Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Dec. 2023 After descending upon a room of statues that will crumble, Grande immediately gets into the groove, reminding everyone what she’s done while delivering her choreography with a shrug and a smile. Jeff Nelson, Peoplemag, 12 Jan. 2024 And being the preseason favorite in the Mountain West and ranked No. 17 in the Associated Press preseason poll was met with impassive shrugs. Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Nov. 2023 Joy Behar is celebrating 81 years on Earth in signature Joy Behar fashion: with a shrug. Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 6 Oct. 2023 But as the chatter gets louder with each day leading up to the NBA trade deadline on Feb. 8, the forward just shrugs at the outside noise. Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 26 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'shrug.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English schruggen

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Noun

1594, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of shrug was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near shrug

Cite this Entry

“Shrug.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shrug. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

shrug

verb
ˈshrəg
shrugged; shrugging
: to draw or hunch up the shoulders usually to express doubt, uncertainty, or lack of interest
shrug noun

More from Merriam-Webster on shrug

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