Link Centre Dictionary

shamble

UK/ˈʃæmbəl/ US/ˈʃʰæmbəl] ~ [ˈʃʰæmbl̩/ uncommon rare
verb (1) noun (1)

verb

1.

walk by dragging one''s feet

  • “he shuffled out of the room”
  • “We heard his feet shuffling down the hall”
Synonyms

noun

1.

walking with a slow dragging motion without lifting your feet

  • “from his shambling I assumed he was very old”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English schambyll, shamyll, schamel, from Old English sċeamol, scamol (“bench, stool”), from Proto-West Germanic *skamul, *skamil, from Proto-Germanic *skamulaz, *skamilaz, from Latin scamellum, a variant of scabellum (“footstool”). Cognate with West Frisian skammel (“shamble, trestle, stool", also (in the plural) "legs, especially when showing defects or deformities”), Dutch schemel (“footstool, bench”), German Schemel (“stool”), Danish skammel (“stool”). Icelandic skemill (“footstool”). The verb is probably derived from the adjective, itself from attributive use of the noun. Compare West Frisian skammelje (“to walk with a swaying gait, especially on deformed legs”).

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.