HOW TO USE THE DICTIONARY

To look up an entry in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, use the search window above. For best results, after typing in the word, click on the “Search” button instead of using the “enter” key.

Some compound words (like bus rapid transit, dog whistle, or identity theft) don’t appear on the drop-down list when you type them in the search bar. For best results with compound words, place a quotation mark before the compound word in the search window.

guide to the dictionary

shun

(shŭn)

tr.v. shunned, shun·ning, shuns

1. To avoid using, accepting, engaging in, or partaking of: shun someone's advice; shun public recognition; shun fatty foods.

2. To refuse to accept socially; avoid having social contact with: "Oddly, by being one of the few players who spoke candidly about the business of baseball, he was often shunned by the business world itself" (David Grann).

3. To stay away from; not go to: "He shunned the elevator and started up the broad marble stairs" (Frederick Irving Anderson).

[Middle English shunnen, from Old English scunian, to abhor.]

shunner n.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

American Heritage Dictionary Products

HOW TO USE THE DICTIONARY

THE USAGE PANEL

AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY APP

THE AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY BLOG

INTERESTED IN DICTIONARIES?

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

American Heritage Dictionary Products