shoo

1 of 2

interjection

used especially in driving away an unwanted animal

shoo

2 of 2

verb

shooed; shooing; shoos

transitive verb

: to scare, drive, or send away by or as if by crying shoo
shooed us away from the kitchen

Examples of shoo in a Sentence

Verb We tried to help her, but she shooed us away. He shooed the cat out of the house.
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.
Verb
The next morning, he will be rudely shooed away from another shop by a proprietor, who would doubtless treat a white child differently. Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 25 Oct. 2024 After a minute of arguing with both referees, with Kerr shooing Green away from one, the power forward picked up his first technical foul of the year. Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 23 Oct. 2024 The program, which started Oct. 1, allows people who lack homes but have cars to sleep in a private parking lot in Indianapolis for up to 60 days, free from the fear that they'll be shooed away by police or property owners. Jordan Smith, The Indianapolis Star, 9 Oct. 2024 The man grabbed a chair from his kitchen, attempting to fend off the bear and shoo her out the door. Celina Tebor, CNN, 7 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for shoo 

Word History

Etymology

Interjection

Middle English schowe

First Known Use

Interjection

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

circa 1798, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of shoo was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near shoo

Cite this Entry

“Shoo.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shoo. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

shoo

verb
ˈshü
: to scare, drive, or send away by or as if by crying shoo
shooed everyone out of the kitchen
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