shovel

English

/ˈʃʌvəl/

noun
Definitions
  • A hand tool with a handle, used for moving portions of material such as earth, snow, and grain from one place to another, with some forms also used for digging. Not to be confused with a spade, which is designed solely for small-scale digging and incidental tasks such as chopping of small roots.
  • (US) A spade.

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English shovele inherited from Old English scofl (shovel) inherited from Proto-Germanic *skuflō suffix from English shove.

Origin

English

shove

Gloss

Timeline

Distribution of cognates by language

Geogrpahic distribution of cognates

Cognates and derived terms