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Webster 1913 Edition

Shadow

Shad′ow

(shăd′ō̍)
,
Noun.
[Originally the same word as
shade
. √162. See
Shade
.]
1.
Shade within defined limits; obscurity or deprivation of light, apparent on a surface, and representing the form of the body which intercepts the rays of light;
as, the
shadow
of a man, of a tree, or of a tower
. See the Note under
Shade
,
Noun.
, 1.
2.
Darkness; shade; obscurity.
Night’s sable
shadows
from the ocean rise.
Denham.
3.
A shaded place; shelter; protection; security.
In secret
shadow
from the sunny ray,
On a sweet bed of lilies softly laid.
Spenser.
4.
A reflected image, as in a mirror or in water.
Shak.
5.
That which follows or attends a person or thing like a shadow; an inseparable companion; hence, an obsequious follower.
Sin and her
shadow
Death.
Milton.
6.
A spirit; a ghost; a shade; a phantom.
“Hence, horrible shadow!”
Shak.
7.
An imperfect and faint representation; adumbration; indistinct image; dim bodying forth; hence, mystical representation; type.
The law having a
shadow
of good things to come.
Heb. x. 1.
[Types] and
shadows
of that destined seed.
Milton.
8.
A small degree; a shade.
“No variableness, neither shadow of turning.”
James i. 17.
9.
An uninvited guest coming with one who is invited.
[A Latinism]
Nares.
I must not have my board pastered with
shadows

That under other men's protection break in
Without invitement.
Massinger.
Shadow of death
,
darkness or gloom like that caused by the presence or the impending of death.
Ps. xxiii. 4.

Shad′ow

,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Shadowed
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Shadowing
.]
[OE.
shadowen
, AS.
sceadwian
. See
adow
,
Noun.
]
1.
To cut off light from; to put in shade; to shade; to throw a shadow upon; to overspead with obscurity.
The warlike elf much wondered at this tree,
So fair and great, that
shadowed
all the ground.
Spenser.
2.
To conceal; to hide; to screen.
[R.]
Let every soldier hew him down a bough.
And bear't before him; thereby shall we
shadow

The numbers of our host.
Shakespeare
3.
To protect; to shelter from danger; to shroud.
Shadowing
their right under your wings of war.
Shakespeare
4.
To mark with gradations of light or color; to shade.
5.
To represent faintly or imperfectly; to adumbrate; hence, to represent typically.
Augustus is
shadowed
in the person of Æneas.
Dryden.
6.
To cloud; to darken; to cast a gloom over.
The
shadowed
livery of the burnished sun.
Shakespeare
Why sad?
I must not see the face O love thus
shadowed
.
Beau. & Fl.
7.
To attend as closely as a shadow; to follow and watch closely, especially in a secret or unobserved manner;
as, a detective
shadows
a criminal
.

Webster 1828 Edition

Shadow

SHAD'OW

,
Noun.
1. Shade within defined limits; obscurity or deprivation of light, apparent on a plane and represtnting the form of the body which intercepts the rays of light; as the shadow of a man, of a tree or a tower. The shadow of the earth in in an eclipse of the moon is proof of its sphericity.
2. Darkness; shade; obscurity.
Night's sable shadows from the ocean rise. Denham.
3. Shelter made by any thing that intercepts the light, heat or influence of the air.
In secret shadow from the sunny ray,
On a sweet bed of lilies softly laid. Spenser.
4. Obscure place; secluded retreat.
To secret shadows I retire. [Obs.] Dryden.
5. Dark part of a picture. Obs. [In the last two senses, shade is now used.]
6. A spirit; a ghost. Obs. [In this sense, shade is now used.]
7. In painting, the representation of a real shadow.
8. An imperfect and faint representation; opposed to substance.
The law of having a shadow of good things to come. Heb. 10.
9. Inseparable companion.
Sin and her shadow, death. Milton.
10. Type; mystical representaion.
Types and shadows of that destin'd seed. Milton.
11. Protection; shelter; favor.
12. Slight or faint appearance.

Definition 2024

shadow

shadow

English

Shadows on the beach

Noun

The shadow of the photographer, taken in Singapore

shadow ‎(plural shadows)

  1. A dark image projected onto a surface where light (or other radiation) is blocked by the shade of an object.
    • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 1, in The Celebrity:
      The stories did not seem to me to touch life. […] They left me with the impression of a well-delivered stereopticon lecture, with characters about as life-like as the shadows on the screen, and whisking on and off, at the mercy of the operator.
    My shadow lengthened as the sun began to set.‎
    The X-ray showed a shadow on his lung.‎
  2. Relative darkness, especially as caused by the interruption of light; gloom, obscurity.
    I immediately jumped into shadow as I saw them approach.‎
    • Denham
      Night's sable shadows from the ocean rise.
    • Spenser
      In secret shadow from the sunny ray, / On a sweet bed of lilies softly laid.
  3. (obsolete) A reflected image, as in a mirror or in water.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Shakespeare to this entry?)
  4. That which looms as though a shadow.
    • 1992, Rudolf M. Schuster, The Hepaticae and Anthocerotae of North America: East of the Hundredth Meridian, volume V, page vii
      Hepaticology, outside the temperate parts of the Northern Hemisphere, still lies deep in the shadow cast by that ultimate "closet taxonomist," Franz Stephani—a ghost whose shadow falls over us all.
    I don't have a shadow of doubt in my mind that my plan will succeed.   The shadow of fear of my being outed always affects how I live my life.   I lived in her shadow my whole life.‎
  5. A small degree; a shade.
    He did not give even a shadow of respect to the professor.‎
    • 2015 December 5, Alan Smith, “Leicester City back on top as Riyad Mahrez hat-trick downs Swansea City”, in The Guardian (London):
      Only Sunderland and West Bromwich Albion have enjoyed less possession than Leicester’s 44.2% per game, and they have the worst pass-completion rate in the league, a shadow over 71%.
    • Bible, James i. 17
      no variableness, neither shadow of turning
  6. An imperfect and faint representation.
    He came back from war the shadow of a man.
    the neopagan ritual was only a pale shadow of the ones the Greeks held thousands of years ago
    • Bible, Hebrews x. 1
      the law having a shadow of good things to come
    • Milton
      [types] and shadows of that destined seed
  7. One who secretly or furtively follows another.
    The constable was promoted to working as a shadow for the Royals.‎
    • Milton
      Sin and her shadow Death
  8. A type of lettering form of word processors that makes a cubic effect.
  9. An influence, especially a pervasive or a negative one.
    • 1844 November 18, Ralph Waldo Emerson, “The Present Age: Politics”, in Robert E. Spiller, Wallace E. Williams, editor, The early lectures of Ralph Waldo Emerson, volume 3, published 1972:
      Men see the institution and worship it. It is only the lengthened shadow of one man. […] The Reformation is the shadow of Luther: Quakerism of Fox: Methodism of Wesley: Abolition of Clarkson.
  10. A spirit; a ghost; a shade.
    • Shakespeare Macbeth act 3 scene 4
      The baby of a girl. Hence, horrible shadow!
  11. (obsolete, Latinism) An uninvited guest accompanying one who was invited.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Nares to this entry?)

Usage notes

  • A person (or object) is said to "cast", "have", or "throw" a shadow if that shadow is caused by the person (either literally, by eclipsing a light source, or figuratively). The shadow may then be described as the shadow "cast" or "thrown" by the person, or as the shadow "of" the person, or simply as the person's shadow.

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

shadow ‎(third-person singular simple present shadows, present participle shadowing, simple past and past participle shadowed)

  1. To block light or radio transmission.
    Looks like that cloud's going to shadow us.
  2. (espionage) To secretly or discreetly track or follow another, to keep under surveillance.
  3. To accompany a professional during the working day, so as to learn about an occupation one intends to take up.
  4. (programming) To make an identifier, usually a variable, inaccessible by declaring another of the same name within the scope of the first.
  5. (computing) To apply the shadowing process to (the contents of ROM).

Derived terms

Translations

Adjective

shadow ‎(comparative more shadow, superlative most shadow)

  1. Unofficial, informal, unauthorized, but acting as though it were.
    The human resources department has a shadow information technology group without headquarters knowledge.
  2. Having power or influence, but not widely known or recognized.
    The director has been giving shadow leadership to the other group's project to ensure its success.
    The illuminati shadow group has been pulling strings from behind the scenes.
  3. (politics) Acting in a leadership role before being formally recognized.
    The shadow cabinet cannot agree on the terms of the agreement due immediately after they are sworn in.
    The insurgents’ shadow government is being crippled by the federal military strikes.

Derived terms

Etymology

From Middle English schadowe, schadewe, schadwe (also schade > shade), from Old English sceaduwe, sceadwe, oblique form of sceadu ‎(“shadow, shade; darkness; protection”), from Proto-Germanic *skadwaz ‎(“shade, shadow”), from Proto-Indo-European *skot- ‎(“darkness”). Cognate with Scots scaddow, schaddow ‎(“shadow”), Saterland Frisian Skaad ‎(“shade, shadow”), Dutch schaduw ‎(“shadow”), German Schatten ‎(“shadow, shade”), Norwegian skodde ‎(“fog, mist”), Irish scáth ‎(“shadow”), Ancient Greek σκότος ‎(skótos, “darkness, gloom”).

Pronunciation

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