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shal·low

(shălō)

adj. shal·low·er, shal·low·est

1. Measuring little from bottom to top or surface; lacking physical depth.

2. Lacking depth of intellect, emotion, or knowledge: "This is a shallow parody of America" (Lloyd Rose).

3. Marked by insufficient inhalation of air; weak: shallow respirations.

4. In the part of a playing area that is closer to home plate: shallow left field.

often shallows A part of a body of water of little depth; a shoal: abandoned the boat in the shallows.

tr. & intr.v. shal·lowed, shal·low·ing, shal·lows

To make or become shallow.

[Middle English schalowe.]

shallow·ly adv.

shallow·ness n.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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