shrink-wrap

verb

ˈshriŋk-ˌrap How to pronounce shrink-wrap (audio)
 especially Southern  ˈsriŋk-
shrink-wrapped; shrink-wrapping; shrink-wraps

transitive verb

: to wrap (something, such as a book or a piece of meat) in tough clear plastic film that is then shrunk (as by heating) to form a tightly fitting package
shrink-wrap noun

Examples of shrink-wrap in a Sentence

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.
Every day, people interact with various forms of food packaging, from shrink-wrap to plastic takeout containers. Becky Upham, EverydayHealth.com, 20 Sep. 2024 Vinyl itself is made from polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a plastic polymer, and often comes wrapped in single-use plastic shrink-wrap. Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 22 Apr. 2024 Billie Eilish recently spoke with Billboard about her decision to use 100% recycled vinyl, plus recycled scraps for colored variants and shrink-wrap packaging made from sugar cane, materials that Audiodrome is also using. Katie Bain, Billboard, 22 Apr. 2024 After getting the money from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the U.N. flies shrink-wrapped $100 bills to the Kabul International Airport. T. Christian Miller, ProPublica, 20 Mar. 2024 This method follows the lead of thinner skinned English cucumbers, which are shrink-wrapped in plastic. Susan Hall Mahon, Southern Living, 2 Feb. 2024 The heat from the hair dryer essentially shrink-wraps the film to the window frame. Belle Duchene, Better Homes & Gardens, 31 Oct. 2023 These attitudes toward the human body seem echoed even in the way meat is presented to us in supermarket freezers: filleted and shrink-wrapped, so that any trace of its anatomical origin is erased. Will Self, Harper's Magazine, 12 Sep. 2022 The low-voltage wires and parts were also tacked onto acrylic, individually crimped, and heat shrink-wrapped. Kevin Purdy, Ars Technica, 28 Mar. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1959, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of shrink-wrap was in 1959

Dictionary Entries Near shrink-wrap

Cite this Entry

“Shrink-wrap.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shrink-wrap. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!