Meaning & use
shelf life
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
The length of time a food or other product can be stored before it spoils or loses its quality.
Grammar: Usually singular with a modifier: a long shelf life, a short shelf life.
Patterns
- a shelf life of something
- extend the shelf life of something
Fresh bread has a very short shelf life.
Canned beans have a shelf life of several years.
Preservatives help extend the shelf life of snacks.
nouncountablefigurative
The period during which an idea, product or fashion stays popular or useful before people lose interest.
Grammar: Figurative use: used for trends rather than food: a short shelf life.
Patterns
- a short shelf life
- a shelf life of something
Viral dances often have a short shelf life.
Some phone models have a surprisingly short shelf life.
The slogan had a short shelf life.
Word forms
| plural | shelf lives |
|---|
Common combinations
- long shelf life
- Honey has a long shelf life.
- short shelf life
- Berries have a short shelf life.
- extend the shelf life
- Vacuum packing extends the shelf life of meat.
- shelf life of
- The shelf life of the paint is two years.
- limited shelf life
- Fresh herbs have a limited shelf life.
Synonyms and how they differ
- expiry date
- Expiry date is a specific day printed on a product, while shelf life is a length of time.
- durability
- Durability describes how long something lasts through use, but shelf life is about how long it stays good while stored.
- keeping time
- Keeping time is informal and mostly about food that is stored at home.
- lifespan
- Lifespan is the total life of a living thing or machine, whereas shelf life is for stored goods.
Word family
- shelf noun
- a flat board for storing things
- shelve verb
- to put on a shelf or postpone
- perishable adjective
- likely to spoil quickly
- preservative noun
- a substance that stops spoiling
Commonly confused: shelf life or expiry date?
shelf life vs expiry date
An expiry date is a fixed day, while shelf life is how long you can keep something.
Practice
Dried pasta has a long ___, so you can keep it in the cupboard for years.
Choose one answer.
Shelf life is how long a product stays good in storage. Shelf space is room on a shelf.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “shelf life”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.