ENGLISH
REFERENCE

shaft

n. · v.
US //ˈʃæft// UK //ʃˈɑːft// shaft
  1. 1 long handle or body (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    the long, thin part of a tool, weapon, or golf club.

    the long, narrow, central body of an object, such as the handle of a tool or the main part of an arrow or spear.

    Example

    He gripped the wooden shaft of the axe firmly before swinging it at the log.

    Example

    The carbon-fibre shaft of the new driver is designed to increase swing speed while maintaining structural rigidity under high torque.
  2. 2 vertical passage (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Architecture

    a long, vertical opening through a building or the ground.

    a vertical or inclined passage, such as those used for elevators, ventilation, or access to a mine.

    Example

    The workers had to climb down the ventilation shaft to fix the fan.

    Example

    The architect designed a central light shaft to ensure that even the innermost offices received a degree of natural illumination during the day.
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  1. 3 beam of light (n.)
    C1 Advanced Literary

    a single beam or ray of light.

    a distinct beam or ray of light, often seen piercing through darkness or clouds.

    Example

    A shaft of sunlight came through the window and lit up the dust in the air.

    Example

    A single shaft of golden light broke through the heavy canopy, illuminating the forest floor where the deer stood perfectly still.
  2. 4 mechanical part (n.)
    C1 Advanced Technical Technical

    a rotating rod in a machine that carries power.

    a rotating mechanical component, usually circular in cross-section, used to transmit power or motion.

    Example

    The drive shaft connects the engine to the wheels of the car.

    Example

    The engineers identified a hairline fracture in the main drive shaft, which explained the unusual vibration reported by the pilot during takeoff.
  3. 5 anatomy (n.)
    C1 Advanced Technical Medicine

    the main, long part of certain body parts, like a bone or the penis.

    the midsection or main cylindrical portion of an anatomical structure, such as a long bone or the penis.

    Example

    The X-ray showed a clean break in the shaft of the femur.

    Example

    The surgeon noted that the fracture was located mid-shaft, requiring the insertion of a titanium rod to stabilise the bone during recovery.
  4. 6 to treat unfairly (v.)
    C1 Advanced Informal Slang

    to treat someone very unfairly or trick them.

    to treat someone with extreme unfairness or to cheat them, often in a business or social context.

    Example

    He really got shafted by his business partner, who took all the money.

    Example

    The junior employees felt they had been shafted when the company cancelled their bonuses despite record-breaking annual profits.
  5. 7 sexual intercourse (v.)
    C2 Proficiency Slang Vulgar

    a very rude word for having sex.

    to engage in sexual intercourse; highly informal and often considered aggressive or crude.

    Example

    He was bragging about who he shafted last night.

    Example

    The dialogue in the film was criticised for its reliance on vulgarities, including several graphic uses of the word shafted.
Origin

From Middle English schaft, from Old English sċeaft, from Proto-West Germanic skaft, from Proto-Germanic skaftaz. Cognate with Dutch schacht, German German Schaft, Swedish skaft. In Early Modern English, shaft referred to the entire body of a long weapon, such that an arrow's “shaft” was composed of its tip, stale, and fletching. Over time, the word came to be used in place of the former stale and lost its original meaning.

Word family

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