Meaning

A dance move involving thrusting the shoulders back and forth alternately..

Definitions by Sense

1. A dance move involving thrusting the shoulders back and forth alternately.
2. A dance that was popular in the 1920s.
3. An abnormal vibration, especially in the wheels of a vehicle.
4. (rare) A sleeveless chemise.
5. (dance) To perform a shimmy (dance movement involving thrusting the shoulders back and forth alternately).
6. To climb something (e.g. a pole) gradually (e.g. using alternately one's arms then one's legs).
7. (intransitive) To vibrate abnormally, as a broken wheel.
8. (intransitive, rare) To shake the body as if dancing the shimmy.

Example Sentences

The tango, the Texas Tommy, Walking the Dog, the one step, the fox trot, the shimmy, and all their out-growths, had their origin in the palaces of lust on the Barbary Coast of San Francisco.

She wondered would he think her awful, and try to get fresh if she shimmied. Fellows often did. But he was so cute. And a girl had to something about that, and if she didn't shimmy, she might do something worse.

He shimmied up the flagpole.

The static made her dress shimmy up her leg.

They came in among earth-moving machines, a total absence of trees, the usual hieratic geometry, and eventually, shimmying for the sand roads, down in a helix to a sculptured body of water named Lake Inverarity.

Jump up to the ledge on your right and shimmy around the corner.

Climb on top of the room and drop down to shimmy along its back ledge.

Word Forms

• shimmies
• shimmying
• shimmied

Synonyms for shimmy

Related Words

When Should You Use Shimmy?

Use shimmy when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.

Practice This Word

Frequently Asked Questions