/ʃɹʌɡ/
OriginFrom Middle English schruggen, shrukken, probably of North Germanic origin related to Danish skrugge, skrukke (“to stoop; crouch”), Swedish skruga, skrukka (“to huddle; crouch”), all from or related to Old Norse skrykkva, from Proto-Germanic *skrinkwaną. Compare also Old English scrincan (“to shrink”). More at shrink.
- A lifting of the shoulders to signal indifference or a casual lack of knowledge.
“He dismissed my comment with a shrug.”
- A cropped, cardigan-like garment with short or long sleeves, typically knitted.
- ambitransitiveTo raise (the shoulders) to express uncertainty, lack of concern, (formerly) dread, etc.
“I asked him for an answer and he just shrugged.”
“When he saw the problem, he just shrugged and started fixing it.”
“He[…] shrugs his shoulders when you talk of securities.”
Formsshrugs(plural) · shrugs(present, singular, third-person) · shrugging(participle, present) · shrugged(participle, past) · shrugged(past)