Meaning & use
shunts
Last updated
“shunts” is a form of “shunt”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbtransitive
Moves someone or something to a different place, often quickly or without much care.
Grammar: Takes an object: shunt the boxes aside.
Patterns
- shunt someone/something to something
- shunt someone/something around
- shunt someone/something aside
The nurse shunts patients from one ward to another when beds are needed.
Rail staff shunt the empty carriages to a siding overnight.
He shunts the paperwork around his desk instead of dealing with it.
verbtransitivemedicaltechnical
In medicine, moves blood or another fluid from one part of the body to another through a tube or passage.
Grammar: Used with a body part or fluid as the object, often in the passive.
Patterns
- shunt blood from something to something
- shunt fluid away from something
The surgeon shunts blood away from the damaged vessel.
In this condition, blood shunts from the left side of the heart to the right.
nouncountablemedical
A tube or passage that surgeons use to move fluid from one part of the body to another.
Grammar: Countable: one shunt, two shunts.
Patterns
- have a shunt fitted
- insert a shunt
The child had a shunt fitted to drain fluid from the brain.
Doctors checked that the shunt was still working properly.
nouncountable
A heavy push or knock that sends something sideways, especially a vehicle.
Grammar: Countable; usually describes a sudden sideways movement.
Patterns
- give something a shunt
- a shunt from behind
The car got a shunt from behind at the traffic lights.
A sudden shunt sent the trolley rolling into the wall.
Word forms
| base form | shunt |
|---|---|
| past tense | shunted |
| past participle | shunted |
| -ing form | shunting |
Common combinations
- shunt aside
- The manager shunted the complaint aside and carried on.
- shunt between
- Staff are shunted between departments as needs change.
- a shunt operation
- The shunt operation relieved the pressure on his brain.
- shunt traffic
- Police shunted traffic away from the flooded road.
Synonyms and how they differ
- transfer
- More neutral and formal; it does not suggest the quick, careless movement that shunt often carries.
- divert
- Suggests changing a route or direction, especially of traffic or resources, rather than physically pushing something.
- move
- The most general word; use it when you do not want to suggest haste or lack of care.
Word family
- shunter noun
- A person or small locomotive that moves railway carriages.
- shunting noun
- The act of moving trains or vehicles from one track to another.
Commonly confused: shunts or shun?
shunts vs shun
Shun means to avoid or reject someone deliberately; shunt means to move something to another place.
Practice
Which sentence uses "shunts" correctly in a medical sense?
Choose one answer.
In medicine, shunt means to move blood or fluid from one place to another, so option A fits. Option B is about rearranging a schedule, option C is about money, and option D uses shunt without an object, which the verb does not allow here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “shunts”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.