shiv

1 of 2

noun

ˈshiv

plural shivs

Synonyms of shiv next

slang

: a small usually improvised pointed or bladed weapon

With nothing but time on their hands, the prisoners craft weapons from available resources: shivs are made from toothbrushes or pieces of metal bunks.—

Newsweek

Some created makeshift weapons by fashioning "shivs" out of sharpened spoons and toothbrushes …—

Kristian Silva

The guards were … attacked with a makeshift weapon—a so-called shiv, fashioned from razor blades and a toothbrush …—

The Irish Examiner

… remove the staple from a magazine, straighten it, mount it in a juice straw …, you got yourself a neat little shiv …—

Kent H. Dixon

—sometimes used figuratively

… gave an artful lesson in how to stick a shiv into a sitting president without ever raising his voice or making a specific accusation.—

Walter Shapiro

shiv

2 of 2

verb

shivved also shived; shivving also shiving; shivs

transitive verb

informal

: to stab or cut (someone) with a shiv (see shiv entry 1)

shivved him in the back

—often used figuratively

Any signs of dissent will result in his personally shivving the offender politically …—

Hayes Brown

Examples of shiv in a Sentence

Noun watch yourself in Cell Block 8, or you'll end up with a shiv in your back

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Noun

Chimney walks them through using the shiv to slice down to the muscle along the girl’s leg. —

Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 3 Oct. 2024 The victim was sitting alone at a table when a man sneaked up behind him and pulled out a shiv from his waistband. —

Rich Schapiro, NBC News, 18 Sep. 2024

Verb

Shannon says, sticking the I’m-a-housewife-and-you’re-not shiv between Alexis’s ribs. —

Peter Larsen, Orange County Register, 14 Nov. 2024 After all, one of its tech-bro founders, Alex Mather, smugly told the New York Times in 2017 that the site’s goal was essentially to shiv every newspaper sports section around the country. —

Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 8 Jan. 2022 See all Example Sentences for shiv