shelf

(shĕlf)
n., pl., shelves (shĕlvz).

1. 1. A flat, usually rectangular structure composed of a rigid material, such as wood, glass, or metal, fixed at right angles to a wall or other vertical surface and used to hold or store objects.
   2. The contents or capacity of such a structure.
   3. Something, such as a projecting ledge of rock or a balcony, that resembles such a structure.
2. A reef, sandbar, or shoal.
3. Bedrock.

idioms:

off the shelf

1. From ready-made merchandise in stock: supplies that were available off the shelf.

on the shelf

1. In a state of disuse.
2. 1. Unemployed.
   1. Out of circulation.
   1. Retired.

[Middle English, probably from Middle Low German schelf.]

shelfful shelf'ful' n.

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has the plural form shelves, and the corresponding verb is shelve. The compound form shelf-ful should be written with a hyphen for clarity, and its plural is shelf-fuls.

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1. A flat surface mounted horizontally, used to support or store objects.
2. Any projecting, flat, near-horizontal surface, such as a ledge of rock.

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IN BRIEF: A thin piece of wood or other material used to hold or display things.

A colored glass collection was displayed on large shelves.

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sign description: Both B-hands with palms facing downward move away from each other.

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noun
noun

1: An informer. Also shelfer. (1916 —) .
W. Moxham 'Who's going to split? His word wouldn't carry much weight.' 'I'm no shelf' (1969). verb trans.

2: To inform on. (1936 —) .
V. Kelly 'Is he all right?'...'Of course he's all right. Pat never shelfed a man in his life. The court records show that' (1975).

[Prob. from the phr. on the shelf, out of the way.]

Previous:	shekels, sheila, sheet
Next:	shell, shellac, shellacked

For a list of words related to shelves, see:

• Cases, Cupboards, and Chests - shelves: set of horizontal strips arranged vertically on wall

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See words rhyming with "shelf."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Shelf.

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Dansk (Danish)
1.
n. - hylde

idioms:

• off the shelf    fra lager
• on the shelf    på hylden, skrinlagt, henlagt
• shelf life    holdbarhed

2.
n. - stikker
v. tr. - stikke

Nederlands (Dutch)
plank, schap, rif

Français (French)
1.
n. - étagère, rayon, clayette

idioms:

• off the shelf    en série
• on the shelf    laissé pour compte, en suspens
• shelf life    durée de conservation, (fig) durée de vie, période de gloire

2.
n. - dénonciateur
v. tr. - informer sur (qn), dénoncer (qn)

Deutsch (German)
1.
n. - Brett, Fach

idioms:

• off the shelf    vom Ständer
• on the shelf    ausrangiert, sitzengeblieben
• shelf life    Lagerfähigkeit

2.
n. - Polizeispitzel
v. - informieren Über, bespitzeln

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - ράφι, γείσωμα, (γεωγρ.) μπάγκος, υφαλοκρηπίδα, (αυτοκ.) εταζέρα

idioms:

• off the shelf    ετοιμοπαράδοτος
• on the shelf    στο ράφι, (μτφ.) στο ψυγείο/χρονοντούλαπο
• shelf life    (οικον.) διάρκεια ζωής εμπορεύματος, (οικον.) διάρκεια ζωής ή διατήρησης εμπορεύματος

Italiano (Italian)
picco, scaffale

idioms:

• off the shelf    dallo stock
• on the shelf    messo/a in disparte
• shelf life    durata

Português (Portuguese)
n. - prateleira (f), estante (f)

idioms:

• off the shelf    pronta entrega
• on the shelf    ser posto a parte
• shelf life    validade para armazenagem

Русский (Russian)
полка, отмель, уступ

idioms:

• off the shelf    из наличного запаса, не по предварительному заказу
• on the shelf    не у дел
• shelf life    срок хранения

Español (Spanish)
1.
n. - estante, repisa

idioms:

• off the shelf    disponible en existencia
• on the shelf    quedarse para vestir santos, arrinconado, olvidado
• shelf life    vida útil, vida de estante

2.
n. - informante
v. tr. - declarar contra (uno)

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - hylla, klipphylla, avsats

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
架子, 搁板

idioms:

• off the shelf    现货供应
• on the shelf    在搁板上, 束之高阁, 不再流行, 推迟执行, 无结婚希望
• shelf life    货架期, 保存限期

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 架子, 擱板

idioms:

• off the shelf    現貨供應
• on the shelf    在擱板上, 束之高閣, 不再流行, 推遲執行, 無結婚希望
• shelf life    貨架期, 保存限期

한국어 (Korean)
1.
n. - 선반, 모래톱, 활을 쥔 손의 위쪽

2.
n. - 정보제공자
v. tr. - ~에 대해 밀고하다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 棚, 一棚分, 岩棚, 暗礁

idioms:

• off the shelf    在庫があって, 規格品で
• on the shelf    棚の上で, 棚ざらしにされて, 婚期が遅れて
• shelf life    貯蔵寿命

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) رف‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮מדף, בליטה, זיז‬
n. - ‮מודיע משטרתי (אוסטרליה)‬
v. tr. - ‮הודיע על (מישהו)‬

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