How do you use the word "shield" in a sentence?

Q: How do you use the word "shield" in a sentence?

Here are real-life examples of using "shield": Look on both sides of the shield. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.

Shield Meaning

/ˈʃiːld/

Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.

Definition

nounAnything that protects or defends; defense; shelter; protection.

nounAnything that protects or defends; defense; shelter; protection., A broad piece of defensive armor, held in hand, formerly in general use in war, for the protection of the body.

Sentence Examples

Look on both sides of the shield.

Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms:

shell screen harbor

Antonyms:

None

CEFR Practice Quiz

The brave knight raised his wooden ____ to block the enemy's arrows.

CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)

The ozone layer provides a vital ____ that protects the earth from harmful ultraviolet radiation.

Word Origin & History

From Middle English scheld, shelde, from Old English scield (“shield”), from Proto-West Germanic *skeldu, from Proto-Germanic *skelduz (“shield”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kelH- (“cut, split”). Cognates Cognate with West Frisian skyld (“shield”), Bavarian Schuid (“shield”), Dutch schild (“shield”), German and Low German Schild (“shield”), Luxembourgish Schëld (“shield”), Yiddish שילד (shild, “shield”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, and Norwegian Nynorsk skjold (“shield”), Elfdalian stjöld (“shield”), Faroese skjøldur (“shield”), Gutnish skiåld (“shield”), Icelandic skjöldur (“shield”), Swedish sköld (“shield”), Gothic 𐍃𐌺𐌹𐌻𐌳𐌿𐍃 (skildus, “shield”). Compare Breton skoed (“shield”), Irish sciath (“shield”), Scottish Gaelic sgiath (“shield”), Latin scūtum (“shield”), Latgalian škīda (“shield”), Lithuanian skydas (“shield”), Belarusian шчыт (ščyt, “shield”), Bulgarian, Russian, and Ukrainian щит (ščyt, “shield”), Czech and Slovak štít (“shield”), Macedonian штит (štit, “shield”), Polish szczyt (“shield”), Serbo-Croatian штит, štit, ščit (“shield”), Slovene ščit (“shield”), from Proto-Indo-European *skey- (“to dissect, split”).

Literary Quotations & Historical Citations

"Knock go and come; God's vassals drop and die; And sword and shield, In bloody field, Doth win immortal fame." — 1599, William Shakespeare, Henry V, act III, scene II, line 8:

"The shields used by our Norman ancestors were the triangular or heater shield, the target or buckler, the roundel or rondache, and the pavais, pavache, or tallevas." — 1786, Francis Grose, A Treatise on Ancient Armour and Weapons, page 22:

"My client welcomed the judge […] and they disappeared together into the Ethiopian card-room, which was filled with the assegais and exclamation point shields Mr. Cooke had had made at the sawmill at Beaverton." — 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter VIII, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:

"Beowulf, behind his shield, thrust forth only his right arm." — 1961, Norma Lorre Goodrich, “Beowulf”, in The Medieval Myths, New York: The New American Library, page 44:

"Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward." — 1611, The Holy Bible, King James Version edition, Genesis 15:1:

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