shelf

B1 Topic:General Vocabulary

US /ʃɛlf/ See IPA manual

Minimal pairs

Sounds like self /s/ vs /ʃ/

Freq #6473

Meanings

1

noun
A flat board fixed to a wall or inside a cupboard, used to hold or store things.

We keep the old newspapers on the bottom shelf of the cupboard.
2

noun
A flat ledge of rock that sticks out, especially on a mountain or under the sea.

Seals rested on the rocky shelf below the cliff.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

2 noun · a flat ledge of rock that... ledge

Word family

Forms shelves

Derived forms alongshelfbeamshelfbottom-shelfice-shelfintrashelfmantelshelfmid-shelfoff-the-shelfrockshelfshelf-screamershelf-stableshelf-talker

Related forms shelve

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

shelf life
the period for which a stored product remains usable without deteriorating

Noun + noun

Simplified etymology

Shelf entered Middle English from Middle Low German schelf. It is related to Old English scylfe “partition” and scylf “crag.”

Etymology

From Middle English schelfe, probably from Old English sċylfe, sċilfe (“shelf, ledge, deck of a ship”), from Proto-West Germanic *skilfijā, from Proto-Germanic *skelfō (“shelf, ledge, cliff”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kelH- (“to cut”), distantly related to sculpt, carve and shell. Cognate with Dutch schelf (“hay loft, haystack”), German Low German Schelf (“haystack”), Old Norse skjalf (“bench”).

schelfe Middle English sċielfe Old English *skilfijā Proto-West Germanic *skelfō Proto-Germanic *(s)kelH- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

General Vocabulary

External links

# shelf

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B1
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ʃɛlf/
**Frequency rank:** 6473

## Meanings
1. A flat board fixed to a wall or inside a cupboard, used to hold or store things.
2. A flat ledge of rock that sticks out, especially on a mountain or under the sea.

## Examples
- We keep the old newspapers on the bottom shelf of the cupboard.
- Seals rested on the rocky shelf below the cliff.

## Derived Forms
- alongshelf
- beamshelf
- bottom-shelf
- ice-shelf
- intrashelf
- mantelshelf
- mid-shelf
- off-the-shelf
- rockshelf
- shelf-screamer
- shelf-stable
- shelf-talker

## Related Forms
- shelve

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: schelfe
- Root: sċielfe
- Root: *skilfijā
- Root: *skelfō
- Root: *(s)kelH-

## Etymology
From Middle English schelfe, probably from Old English sċylfe, sċilfe (“shelf, ledge, deck of a ship”), from Proto-West Germanic *skilfijā, from Proto-Germanic *skelfō (“shelf, ledge, cliff”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kelH- (“to cut”), distantly related to sculpt, carve and shell. Cognate with Dutch schelf (“hay loft, haystack”), German Low German Schelf (“haystack”), Old Norse skjalf (“bench”).

## AI Etymology
Shelf is from Middle English schelfe, probably from Old English sċylfe, sċilfe (“shelf, ledge, deck of a ship”), from Proto-West Germanic *skilfijā, from Proto-Germanic *skelfō (“shelf, ledge, cliff”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kelH- (“to cut”), distantly related to sculpt, carve and shell. Cognate with Dutch schelf (“hay loft, haystack”), German Low German Schelf (“haystack”), Old Norse skjalf (“bench”). Important forms in the word's history include Middle English schelfe, Old English sċielfe, Proto-West Germanic *skilfijā, Proto-Germanic *skelfō, Proto-Indo-European *(s)kelH-. In current use it includes senses such as A flat board fixed to a wall or inside a cupboard, used to hold or store things and A flat ledge of rock that sticks out, especially on a mountain or under the sea.

## Topics
- General Vocabulary

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