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Shade definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

SHADE, n. [L. scutum, a shield.]
1. Literally, the interception, cutting of or interruption of the rays of light; hence, the obscurity which is caused by such interception. Shad differs from shadow, as it implies no particular form or definite limit. whereas a shadow represents in form the object which intercepts the light. Hence when we say, let us resort to the shade of a tree, we have no reference to its form; but when we speak of measuring a pyramid or other object by its shadow, we have reference to its extent.
2. Darkness; obscurity; as the shades of night.
3. An obscure place, properly in a grove or close wood, which precludes the sun's rays; an hence, a secluded retreat.
Let us seek out some desolate shade, and there
Weep our sad bosoms empty. Shak.
4. A screen; something that intercepts light or heat.
5. Protection; shelter. [See Shadow.]
6. In painting, the dark part of the picture.
7. Degree or gradation of light.
White, red, yellow, blue, with their several degrees, or shades and mixtures, as green, come only in by the eyes. Locke.
8. A shadow. [See Shadow.]
Envy will merit, as its shade, pursue. Pope. [This is allowable in poetry.]
9. The soul, after its separation from the body; so called because the ancients supposed it to be perceptible to the sight, not to the touch; a spirit; aghost; as the shades of departed heroes.
Swift as thought, the flitting shade- Dryden.
SHADE, v.t.
1. To shelter or screen from light by intercepting its rays; and when applied to the rays of the sun, it segnifies to shelter from light and heat; as, a large tree shades the plants under its branches; shaded vegetables rarely come to perfection.
I went to the sylvan scenes,
And shade our altars with their leafy greens. Dryden.
2. To overspread with darkness or obscurity; to obscure.
Thou shad'st
The full blaze of thy beams. Milton.
3. To shelter; to hide.
Ere in your own house I do shade my head. Shak.
4. To cover from injury; to protect; to screen.
5. To paint in obscure colors; to darken.
6. Tjo mark with gradations of color; as the shading pencil.
7. To darken; to obscure.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: relative darkness caused by light rays being intercepted by an opaque body; "it is much cooler in the shade"; "there's too much shadiness to take good photographs" [syn: shade, shadiness, shadowiness]
2: a quality of a given color that differs slightly from another color; "after several trials he mixed the shade of pink that she wanted" [syn: shade, tint, tincture, tone]
3: protective covering that protects something from direct sunlight; "they used umbrellas as shades"; "as the sun moved he readjusted the shade"
4: a subtle difference in meaning or opinion or attitude; "without understanding the finer nuances you can't enjoy the humor"; "don't argue about shades of meaning" [syn: nuance, nicety, shade, subtlety, refinement]
5: a position of relative inferiority; "an achievement that puts everything else in the shade"; "his brother's success left him in the shade"
6: a slight amount or degree of difference; "a tad too expensive"; "not a tad of difference"; "the new model is a shade better than the old one" [syn: tad, shade]
7: a mental representation of some haunting experience; "he looked like he had seen a ghost"; "it aroused specters from his past" [syn: ghost, shade, spook, wraith, specter, spectre]
8: a representation of the effect of shadows in a picture or drawing (as by shading or darker pigment) v
1: cast a shadow over [syn: shadow, shade, shade off]
2: represent the effect of shade or shadow on [syn: shade, fill in]
3: protect from light, heat, or view; "Shade your eyes when you step out into the bright sunlight"
4: vary slightly; "shade the meaning"
5: pass from one quality such as color to another by a slight degree; "the butterfly wings shade to yellow"

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English, from Old English sceadu; akin to Old High German scato shadow, Greek skotos darkness Date: before 12th century 1. a. comparative darkness or obscurity owing to interception of the rays of light b. relative obscurity or retirement 2. a. shelter (as by foliage) from the heat and glare of sunlight b. a place sheltered from the sun 3. an evanescent or unreal appearance 4. plural a. the shadows that gather as darkness comes on b. netherworld, Hades 5. a. a disembodied spirit ; ghost b. — used to signal the similarity between a previously encountered person or situation and one at hand; usually used in plural <shades of my childhood> 6. something that intercepts or shelters from light, sun, or heat: as a. a device partially covering a lamp so as to reduce glare b. a flexible screen usually mounted on a roller for regulating the light or the view through a window c. plural sunglasses 7. a. the reproduction of the effect of shade in painting or drawing b. a subdued or somber feature 8. a. a color produced by a pigment or dye mixture having some black in it b. a color slightly different from the one under consideration 9. a. a minute difference or variation ; nuance b. a minute degree or quantity 10. a facial expression of sadness or displeasure • shadeless adjective II. verb (shaded; shading) Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. a. to shelter or screen by intercepting radiated light or heat b. to cover with a shade 2. to hide partly by or as if by a shadow 3. to darken with or as if with a shadow 4. to better or exceed by a shade ; surpass, eclipse 5. a. to represent the effect of shade or shadow on b. to add shading to c. to color so that the shades pass gradually from one to another 6. to change by gradual transition or qualification 7. to reduce slightly (as a price) 8. slant, bias intransitive verb 1. to pass by slight changes or imperceptible degrees 2. to undergo or exhibit minute difference or variation • shader noun

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. 1 comparative darkness (and usu. coolness) caused by shelter from direct light and heat. 2 a place or area sheltered from the sun. 3 a darker part of a picture etc. 4 a colour, esp. with regard to its depth or as distinguished from one nearly like it. 5 comparative obscurity. 6 a slight amount (am a shade better today). 7 a translucent cover for a lamp etc. 8 a screen excluding or moderating light. 9 an eye-shield. 10 (in pl.) esp. US colloq. sunglasses. 11 a slightly differing variety (all shades of opinion). 12 literary a a ghost. b (in pl.) Hades. 13 (in pl.; foll. by of) suggesting reminiscence or unfavourable comparison (shades of Dr Johnson!). --v. 1 tr. screen from light. 2 tr. cover, moderate, or exclude the light of. 3 tr. darken, esp. with parallel pencil lines to represent shadow etc. 4 intr. & tr. (often foll. by away, off, into) pass or change by degrees. Phrases and idioms: in the shade in comparative obscurity. Derivatives: shadeless adj. Etymology: OE sc(e)adu f. Gmc

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Shade Shade (sh[=a]d), n. [OE. shade, shadewe, schadewe, AS. sceadu, scead; akin to OS. skado, D. schaduw, OHG. scato, (gen. scatewes), G. schatten, Goth. skadus, Ir. & Gael. sgath, and probably to Gr. sko`tos darkness. [root]162. Cf. Shadow, Shed a hat.] 1. Comparative obscurity owing to interception or interruption of the rays of light; partial darkness caused by the intervention of something between the space contemplated and the source of light. Note: Shade differs from shadow as it implies no particular form or definite limit; whereas a shadow represents in form the object which intercepts the light. When we speak of the shade of a tree, we have no reference to its form; but when we speak of measuring a pyramid or other object by its shadow, we have reference to its form and extent. 2. Darkness; obscurity; -- often in the plural. The shades of night were falling fast. --Longfellow. 3. An obscure place; a spot not exposed to light; hence, a secluded retreat. Let us seek out some desolate shade, and there Weep our sad bosoms empty. --Shak. 4. That which intercepts, or shelters from, light or the direct rays of the sun; hence, also, that which protects from heat or currents of air; a screen; protection; shelter; cover; as, a lamp shade. The Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand. --Ps. cxxi. 5. Sleep under a fresh tree's shade. --Shak. Let the arched knife well sharpened now assail the spreading shades of vegetables. --J. Philips. 5. Shadow. [Poetic.] Envy will merit, as its shade, pursue. --Pope. 6. The soul after its separation from the body; -- so called because the ancients it to be perceptible to the sight, though not to the touch; a spirit; a ghost; as, the shades of departed heroes. Swift as thought the flitting shade Thro' air his momentary journey made. --Dryden. 7. (Painting, Drawing, etc.) The darker portion of a picture; a less illuminated part. See Def. 1, above. 8. Degree or variation of color, as darker or lighter, stronger or paler; as, a delicate shade of pink. White, red, yellow, blue, with their several degrees, or shades and mixtures, as green only in by the eyes. --Locke. 9. A minute difference or variation, as of thought, belief, expression, etc.; also, the quality or degree of anything which is distinguished from others similar by slight differences; as, the shades of meaning in synonyms. New shades and combinations of thought. --De Quincey. Every shade of religious and political opinion has its own headquarters. --Macaulay. The Shades, the Nether World; the supposed abode of souls after leaving the body.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Shade Shade, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Shaded; p. pr. & vb. n. Shading.] 1. To shelter or screen by intercepting the rays of light; to keep off illumination from. --Milton. I went to crop the sylvan scenes, And shade our altars with their leafy greens. --Dryden. 2. To shelter; to cover from injury; to protect; to screen; to hide; as, to shade one's eyes. Ere in our own house I do shade my head. --Shak. 3. To obscure; to dim the brightness of. Thou shad'st The full blaze of thy beams. --Milton. 4. To pain in obscure colors; to darken. 5. To mark with gradations of light or color. 6. To present a shadow or image of; to shadow forth; to represent. [Obs.] [The goddess] in her person cunningly did shade That part of Justice which is Equity. --Spenser.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Shade Shade, v. i. [See Shade, n.] To undergo or exhibit minute difference or variation, as of color, meaning, expression, etc.; to pass by slight changes; -- used chiefly with a preposition, as into, away, off. This small group will be most conveniently treated with the emotional division, into which it shades. --Edmund Gurney.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(shades, shading, shaded) Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. A shade of a particular colour is one of its different forms. For example, emerald green and olive green are shades of green. The walls were painted in two shades of green. ...new eyeshadows in a choice of 80 shades. N-COUNT: oft N of n, in N 2. Shade is an area of darkness under or next to an object such as a tree, where sunlight does not reach. Temperatures in the shade can reach forty-eight degrees celsius at this time of year... ...exotic trees provide welcome shade. N-UNCOUNT: oft in the N 3. If you say that a place or person is shaded by objects such as trees, you mean that the place or person cannot be reached, harmed, or bothered by strong sunlight because those objects are in the way. ...a health resort whose beaches are shaded by palm trees... Umbrellas shade outdoor cafes along winding cobblestone streets. VERB: be V-ed, V n 4. If you shade your eyes, you put your hand or an object partly in front of your face in order to prevent a bright light from shining into your eyes. You can't look directly into it; you've got to shade your eyes or close them altogether... = shield VERB: V n 5. Shade is darkness or shadows as they are shown in a picture. ...Rembrandt's skilful use of light and shade to create the atmosphere of movement. ? light 6. The shades of something abstract are its many, slightly different forms. ...the capacity to convey subtle shades of meaning. N-COUNT: usu pl, N of n 7. If something shades into something else, there is no clear division between the two things, so that you cannot tell where or when the first thing ends and the second thing begins. As the dusk shaded into night, we drove slowly through narrow alleys... VERB: V into n 8. Shades are sunglasses. (INFORMAL) N-PLURAL 9. A shade is the same as a lampshade. N-COUNT 10. A shade is a piece of stiff cloth or heavy paper that you can pull down over a window as a covering. (AM; in BRIT, use blind) Nancy left the shades down and the lights off. = blind N-COUNT 11. see also shaded, shading 12. To put someone or something in the shade means to be so impressive that the person or thing seems unimportant by comparison. ...a run that put every other hurdler's performance in the shade. PHRASE: V inflects

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. n. 1. Shadow, umbrage. 2. Darkness, obscurity, dusk, duskiness, gloom. 3. Screen, curtain, veil. 4. Protection, shelter, cover. 5. Color, hue, tint. 6. Degree, kind, variety, minute difference. 7. Ghost, spirit, apparition, spectre, phantom, manes, shadow. II. v. a. 1. Obscure, cloud, darken, eclipse, dim, obfuscate. 2. Screen, cover, protect, shelter. 3. Darken. 4. Shelter, hide, ensconce, protect, screen.

Moby Thesaurus

Masan, achromatism, adumbration, air, amount, anima, anima humana, apparition, appearance, apply paint, astral, astral spirit, atman, atom, awning, ba, baldacchino, baldachin, banshee, beat, becloud, bedarken, bedaub, bedim, bedizen, befog, begild, begloom, belvedere, bemist, besmear, besmirch, best, better, bit, black, black out, blacken, blackness, blackwash, blanket, blind, block the light, blot, blot out, blotch, bogey, breath, breath of life, brown, brush on paint, buddhi, calcimine, caliber, camouflage, canopy, cartoon, cast, cast a shadow, chalk, charcoal, chromatism, chromism, clabber up, cloak, cloud, cloud over, cloud up, coat, color, color balance, color harmony, color scheme, coloration, coloring, compass, complexion, conceal, control, copy, cork, cover, cover up, covering, crayon, crosshatch, curtain, cut, dab, dark shade, darken, darken over, darkness, dash, dash off, daub, decorator color, deep-dye, defense, degree, delineate, denigrate, departed spirit, depict, descant, design, diagram, diapason, difference, dim, dim out, dimness, dinge, dip, disembodied spirit, disguise, dissemble, distemper, distinction, distract attention from, divine breath, doodle, double-dye, draft, draw, draw the curtains, duppy, dusk, duskiness, dybbuk, dye, ebonize, eclipse, ego, eidolon, emblazon, enamel, encloud, encompass with shadow, engild, enmist, ensconce, enshroud, envelop, exceed, extent, eye, face, fantasy, fast-dye, figure, fog, form, fraction, fresco, gazebo, ghost, gild, glaze, gleam, gloom, gloominess, gloss, gloss over, grade, grain, grateful dead, guard, guide, hair, hant, hat, hatch, haunt, haze, heart, height, hide, hint, hue, humor, idea, idolum, illuminate, image, imbue, immateriality, incorporeal, incorporeal being, incorporeity, infusion, ingrain, ink, inkling, inner man, intensity, interval, intimation, iota, jalousie, japan, jiva, jivatma, jot, keep under cover, key, khu, lacquer, lamp shade, larva, lay, lay on color, leap, lee, lemures, level, lick, limn, look, manes, mark, mask, materialization, measure, melanize, melodia, mere shadow, mind, mist, modicum, murk, murkiness, natural color, nephesh, nigrify, notch, nuance, nubilate, obfuscate, obnubilate, obscuration, obscure, obscurity, obumbrate, occult, occultate, oni, opaque, outclass, outdo, outperform, outplay, outshine, outstrip, overcast, overcloud, overshadow, oversmoke, overtone, paint, paint a picture, pallor, parasol, parget, pas, peg, pencil, penumbra, period, phantasm, phantasma, phantasmagoria, phantom, picture, picturize, pigment, pitch, pith helmet, plane, plateau, pneuma, point, poltergeist, portray, presence, preservation, prime, proportion, protect, protection, protective custody, psyche, purusha, put to shame, range, ratio, reach, refuge, remove, revenant, roof, round, ruach, rung, safekeeping, safety, saturation, sauce, scale, scintilla, scope, scratch, screen, scumble, seasoning, shade tree, shades, shadiness, shadow, shadows numberless, shape, shellac, shelter, shield, show up, shroud, shrouded spirit, shutter, silhouette, sip, sketch, skiagram, skiagraph, skin color, slop on paint, slur over, smack, smattering, smear, smell, smidgen, smidgin, smirch, smog, smoke, smudge, smut, smutch, somber, soot, soul, soupcon, space, spark, speck, specter, spectral ghost, spice, spirit, spiritual being, spiritus, spook, sprinkling, sprite, stain, stair, standard, stencil, step, stint, stipple, streak, suggestion, summerhouse, sun hat, sun helmet, sunbonnet, sunshade, sup, surpass, suspicion, taint, taste, temper, tempering, tent, the self, theophany, thought, tinct, tincture, tinge, tint, tittle, tone, topee, touch, trace, tread, tune, umbra, umbrage, umbrageousness, umbrella, undercoat, undercolor, undertone, unsubstantiality, variation, variety, varnish, veil, vein, venetian blind, vestige, vision, visor, waking dream, walking dead man, wandering soul, warble, wash, watchful eye, whitewash, wildest dream, window curtain, window screen, window shade, wraith, zombie