shade

[sheyd] /ʃeɪd/
noun
1.
the comparative darkness caused by the interception or screening of rays of light from an object, place, or area.
2.
a place or an area of comparative darkness, as one sheltered from the sun.
3.
window shade.
4.
a lampshade.
5.
shades.
  1. darkness gathering at the close of day:
    Shades of night are falling.
  2. Informal. sunglasses.
  3. a reminder of something:
    shades of the Inquisition.
6.
Usually, shades. a secluded or obscure place:
He was living in the shades.
7.
comparative obscurity.
8.
a specter or ghost.
9.
Greek and Roman Religion. one of the spirits of the dead inhabiting Hades.
10.
a shadow.
11.
the degree of darkness of a color, determined by the quantity of black or by the lack of illumination.
12.
comparative darkness, as the effect of shadow or dark and light, in pictorial representation; the dark part, or a dark part, of a picture or drawing.
13.
a slight variation or degree:
a shade of difference.
14.
a little bit; touch, especially of something that may change the color of or lighten or darken something else:
coffee with a shade of cream.
15.
anything used for protection against excessive light, heat, etc.
16.
(in architectural shades and shadows) a shadow upon those parts of a solid that are tangent to or turned away from the parallel rays from the theoretical light source.
Compare shadow (def 11).
17.
the shades, Hades, as the abode of the spirits of the dead.
verb (used with object), shaded, shading.
18.
to produce shade in or on.
19.
to obscure, dim, or darken.
20.
to screen or hide from view.
21.
to protect (something) from light, heat, etc., by or as by a screen:
to shade the eyes from a bright light.
22.
to cover or screen (a candle, light, etc.):
to shade a light to protect the eyes.
23.
Fine Arts.
  1. to introduce degrees of darkness into (a drawing or painting) in order to render light and shadow or give the effect of color.
  2. to render the values of light and dark in (a drawn figure, object, etc.), especially in order to create the illusion of three-dimensionality.
24.
to change by imperceptible degrees into something else.
25.
to reduce (the price) by way of a concession.
verb (used without object), shaded, shading.
26.
to pass or change by slight graduations, as one color, quality, or thing into another.
Verb phrases
27.
shade up, Agriculture. to take shelter (as livestock) from the sun.
Idioms
28.
cast / put someone in / into the shade, to make another person's efforts seem insignificant by comparison; surpass:
Her playing puts mine in the shade.
Origin
before 900; 1960-65 for def 28; (noun) Middle English s(c)hade, Old English sceadu (see shadow); cognate with German Schatten, Gothic skadus, Greek skótos; (v.) Middle English schaden, derivative of the noun
Related forms
shadeless, adjective
shadelessness, noun
intershade, verb (used with object), intershaded, intershading.
semishade, noun
unshade, verb (used with object), unshaded, unshading.
Can be confused
color, hue, shade, tint (see synonym study at the current entry)
Synonyms
1. obscurity, gloom, dusk. Shade, shadow imply partial darkness or something less bright than the surroundings. Shade indicates the lesser brightness and heat of an area where the direct rays of light do not fall: the shade of a tree. It differs from shadow in that it implies no particular form or definite limit, whereas shadow often refers to the form or outline of the object that intercepts the light: the shadow of a dog. 8. apparition, phantom, spirit. 13. bit. 14. trace, hint, suggestion. 15. veil, screen. See curtain. 19. cloud, blur, obfuscate. 20. conceal, shelter.
Antonyms
1. light, glare.
Regional variation note
3. See window shade.
Examples from the web for shade
  • shade this bar on the pyramid and repeat for females, using a different color.
  • In warm climates, give light shade during hottest part of day add to my plant list.
  • Made from rubber, every part is the same shade of whatever garish color you choose.
  • Take warning: extremists of any color or politico-religious shade cannot be cuddled, appeased or tolerated.
  • He wrote several poems about lying under trees, gazing at the light and shade.
  • Use another color to shade in areas from which people might emigrate to enjoy those benefits.
  • Except as noted, give full sun in cooler climates, light shade in hotter regions.
  • There's more than a shade of difference between those jumping-off points, with the second one offering more comic possibilities.
  • These are two ways of saying the same thing with but a shade of difference in the meaning.
  • Start with a shade that is lighter than your natural hair color for best results.
British Dictionary definitions for shade

shade

/ʃeɪd/
noun
1.
relative darkness produced by the blocking out of light
2.
a place made relatively darker or cooler than other areas by the blocking of light, esp sunlight
3.
a position of relative obscurity
4.
something used to provide a shield or protection from a direct source of light, such as a lampshade
5.
a darker area indicated in a painting, drawing, etc, by shading
6.
a colour that varies slightly from a standard colour due to a difference in hue, saturation, or luminosity: a darker shade of green
7.
a slight amount: a shade of difference
8.
(literary) a ghost
9.
an archaic word for shadow
10.
put in the shade, to appear better than (another); surpass
verb (mainly transitive)
11.
to screen or protect from heat, light, view, etc
12.
to make darker or dimmer
13.
to represent (a darker area) in (a painting, drawing, etc), by means of hatching, using a darker colour, etc
14.
(also intransitive) to change or cause to change slightly
15.
to lower (a price) slightly
Derived Forms
shadeless, adjective
Word Origin
Old English sceadu; related to Gothic skadus, Old High German skato, Old Irish scāth shadow, Greek skotos darkness, Swedish skäddä fog
Word Origin and History for shade
n.

Middle English schade, Kentish ssed, from late Old English scead "partial darkness; shelter, protection," also partly from sceadu "shade, shadow, darkness; shady place, arbor, protection from glare or heat," both from Proto-Germanic *skadwaz (cf. Old Saxon skado, Middle Dutch scade, Dutch schaduw, Old High German scato, German Schatten, Gothic skadus), from PIE *skot-wo-, from root *skot- "dark, shade" (cf. Greek skotos "darkness, gloom," Albanian kot "darkness," Old Irish scath, Old Welsh scod, Breton squeut "darkness," Gaelic sgath "shade, shadow, shelter").

Figurative use in reference to comparative obscurity is from 1640s. Meaning "a ghost" is from 1610s; dramatic (or mock-dramatic) expression "shades of _____" to invoke or acknowledge a memory is from 1818, from the "ghost" sense. Meaning "lamp cover" is from 1780. Sense of "window blind" first recorded 1845. Meaning "cover to protect the eyes" is from 1801. Meaning "grade of color" first recorded 1680s; that of "degree or gradiation of darkness in a color" is from 1680s (cf. nuance, from French nue "cloud"). Meaning "small amount or degree" is from 1782.

v.

c.1400, "to screen from light or heat," from shade (n.). From 1520s as "to cast a shadow over;" figurative use in this sense from 1580s. Sense in painting and drawing is from 1797. In reference to colors, 1819. Related: Shaded; shading.

Slang definitions & phrases for shade

shade

noun
  1. A black person (1865+)
  2. A receiver of stolen goods; fence: It is sold to a ''fence'' or ''shade'' (1925+ Underworld)
verb

To defeat by a narrow margin: Michigan shaded Iowa. The final score was 98 to 96 (1865+)