shifting
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shift
(shĭft)v. shift·ed, shift·ing, shifts
v.tr.
1. To exchange (one thing) for another of the same class: shifted assignments among the students.
2. To move or transfer from one place or position to another.
3. To alter (position or place).
4. To change (gears), as in an automobile.
5. Linguistics To alter phonetically as part of a systematic historical change.
v.intr.
1. To change position, direction, place, or form.
2.
a. To provide for one's own needs; get along: "See me safe up: for my coming down, I can shift for myself" (Thomas More).
b. To get along by tricky or evasive means.
3. To change gears, as when driving an automobile.
4. Linguistics To be altered as part of a systematic historical change. Used of speech sounds.
5. To use a shift key.
n.
1. A change from one person or configuration to another; a substitution.
2.
a. A group of workers that relieve another on a regular schedule.
b. The working period of such a group: worked the night shift.
3.
a. A means to an end; an expedient.
b. A stratagem; a trick.
4. A change in direction: a shift in the wind.
5. A change in attitude, judgment, or emphasis.
6. A change in position, as:
a. Music A change of the hand position in playing the violin or a similar instrument.
b. Football A rearrangement of players from one formation to another just prior to the snap of the ball.
c. Baseball A rearrangement of one or more fielders for improved defense against a particular hitter.
d. Geology See fault.
e. Computers Movement of characters in a register to the left or right, as of the bits in a byte.
7. The act or an instance of using a shift key.
8. Physics A change in wavelength, causing a movement of a spectral band or line.
9. Linguistics
a. A systematic change of the phonetic or phonemic structure of a language.
b. Functional shift.
10.
a. A loosely fitting dress that hangs straight from the shoulder; a chemise.
b. A woman's undergarment; a slip or chemise.
[Middle English shiften, from Old English sciftan, to arrange, divide.]
shift′er n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
shifting
(ˈʃɪftɪŋ)adj
used to describe something which is made up of parts that are continuously moving and changing position in relation to other parts
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
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| Noun | 1. | shifting - the act of moving from one place to another; "his constant shifting disrupted the class" |
| Adj. | 1. | shifting - continuously varying; "taffeta with shifting colors" variable - liable to or capable of change; "rainfall in the tropics is notoriously variable"; "variable winds"; "variable expenses" |
| 2. | shifting - changing position or direction; "he drifted into the shifting crowd"; "their nervous shifting glances"; "shifty winds" unsteady - subject to change or variation; "her unsteady walk"; "his hand was unsteady as he poured the wine"; "an unsteady voice" | |
| 3. |  shifting - (of soil) unstable; "shifting sands"; "unfirm earth"loose - not compact or dense in structure or arrangement; "loose gravel" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
Translations
shifting
[ˈʃɪftɪŋ] ADJ [sand] → movedizo; [winds] → cambiante; [values, attitudes] → cambiantehis constantly shifting moods → sus cambios de humor constantes
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