Shadows — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

noun verb /ˈsha-(ˌ)dō/ shad·ow

Meaning & Definition of Shadows

Shadows (noun)

  1. the dark figure cast upon a surface by a body intercepting the rays from a source of light
  2. partial darkness or obscurity within a part of space from which rays from a source of light are cut off by an interposed opaque body
  3. a small degree or portion, trace
  4. a cosmetic cream or powder in one of various colors that is applied to the eyelids to accent the eyes
  5. a region of reduced rainfall on the lee side of high mountains

Shadows (verb)

  1. to cast a shadow upon, cloud
  2. to follow especially secretly, trail
  3. to accompany and observe especially in a professional setting

Shadows (noun) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. a time or place of little or no light

    "lurking in the shadows"

    similar: black, blackness, candlelight, dark, darkness, dusk, gloaming, gloom, murk, night, semidarkness, shade, twilight, umbra
    related: midnight, blackout, brownout, dimout, shadiness, umbrage, dullness, somberness, cloudiness, fogginess, haziness, mistiness, murkiness, dimness, faintness, gloominess, grayness, paleness, half-light
    opposite: blaze, brightness, brilliance, day, daylight, glare, glow, light, lightness
    near: moonlight, starlight, sunlight, effulgence, radiance, radiancy, shine, sunshine, incandescence, luminance, luminescence, luminosity, luminousness

Shadows (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to go after or on the track of

    "shadowing the suspect to see what he was up to"

    similar: bird-dogs, chases, courses, dogs, follows, hounds, pursues, runs, tags, tails, traces, tracks, trails, runs after
    related: accompanies, chaperones, escorts, hunts, searches (for), seeks, eyes, observes, watches
    opposite: guides, leads, pilots
    near: heads

  2. to make dark, dim, or indistinct

    "thickening clouds shadowed the countryside"

    similar: beclouds, bedims, befogs, blackens, blears, blurs, clouds, darkens, dims, dislimns, fogs, fuzzes (up), hazes, mists, obscures, overcasts, overclouds, overshadows, shrouds
    related: adumbrates, blots out, conceals, eclipses, hides, obliterates, screens, shades, camouflages, cloaks, covers, curtains, disguises, masks, veils
    opposite: brightens, illuminates, illumines, lightens, lights (up)
    near: exposes, reveals, uncovers, unveils

  3. to shelter (something) from light and heat

    "a pathway shadowed by a canopy of arching branches"

    similar: shades
    related: clouds, darkens, dims, dulls, overcasts, overshadows, canopies, covers, protects, screens
    near: illuminates, lightens, lights, exposes

Related Entry: Shadow (noun)

Shadow is a different word from Shadows. The synonyms below are for shadow, not for shadows.

  1. partial darkness due to the obstruction of light rays

    "the valley was in shadow"

    similar: dusk, penumbra, shade, shadiness, umbra
    related: blackness, dimness, duskiness, gloom, gloominess, murkiness, obscurity, semidarkness, somberness, cloudiness
    near: brightness, brilliance, effulgence, illumination, incandescence, light, lightness, lucidity, lucidness, luminance, luminosity, luminousness, radiance, radiancy

  2. a time or place of little or no light

    "lurking in the shadows"

    similar: black, blackness, candlelight, dark, darkness, dusk, gloaming, gloom, murk, night, semidarkness, shade, twilight, umbra
    related: midnight, blackout, brownout, dimout, shadiness, umbrage, dullness, somberness, cloudiness, fogginess, haziness, mistiness, murkiness, dimness, faintness, gloominess, grayness, paleness, half-light
    opposite: blaze, brightness, brilliance, day, daylight, glare, glow, light, lightness
    near: moonlight, starlight, sunlight, effulgence, radiance, radiancy, shine, sunshine, incandescence, luminance, luminescence, luminosity, luminousness

  3. a tiny often physical indication of something lost or vanished

    "a run-down mansion that is only a shadow of its former glory"

    similar: echo, ghost, relic, trace, vestige
    related: memento, remembrance, reminder, artifact, afterimage, aftertaste, balance, corpse, hangover, leftover, oddment, remainder, remnant, scrap, dreg(s), leavings, remain(s), residual, residue, rest

  4. a very small amount

    "not even a shadow of a doubt about the defendant's guilt"

    similar: ace, bit, crumb, dab, dram, driblet, glimmer, hint, lick, little, mite, nip, ounce, particle, peanuts, ray, scintilla, scruple, shade, shred, skosh, smack, smell, smidgen, snap, soupçon, spark, spatter, speck, splash, spot, sprinkling, strain, streak, suspicion, tad, touch, trace, drop in the bucket
    related: hoot, iota, jot, minim, minimum, modicum, semblance, syllable, tittle, vestige, whit, atom, dot, fleck, flyspeck, grain, granule, molecule, morsel, mote, nubbin, patch, scrap, dash, drop, pinch, part, portion, section, bite, nibble, taste, handful, scattering, smatter, smattering, dose, shot, chip, flake, fragment, shard, shiver, sliver, smithereens, splinter, tatter, clipping, paring, shaving
    near: abundance, barrel, boatload, bucket, bundle, bushel, deal, fistful, gobs, heaps, lashings (chiefly British), loads, lot, mass, mess, mountain, much, oodles, passel, peck, pile, plenty, potful, profusion, quantity, raft, reams, scads, stack, wad, wealth, volume, bonanza, embarrassment, excess, overabundance, overage, overflow, overkill, overmuch, oversupply, superabundance, superfluity, surfeit, surplus, chunk, hunk, lump, slab

  5. the soul of a dead person thought of especially as appearing to living people

    "rumors of a shadow haunting the castle"

    similar: apparition, bogey, familiar spirit, ghost, hant (dialect), haunt (chiefly dialect), materialization, phantasm, phantom, poltergeist, shade, specter, spirit, spook, sprite, vision, visitant, wraith
    related: angel, daimon, familiar, genie, genius, jinni, shaitan, double, doppelgänger, fetch, lemures, manes, incubus, lamia, succubus, vampire, zombie, cacodemon, demon, devil, fiend, ghoul, imp

  6. an overspreading element that produces an atmosphere of gloom

    "the husband's adulterous affair had cast over their marriage a shadow from which there was no escape"

    similar: cloud, darkness, pall
    related: fog, haze, mist, murk, penumbra, umbra, midnight, night, mantle, shroud, veil

Related Entry: Shadow (verb)

Shadow is a different word from Shadows. The synonyms below are for shadow, not for shadows.

  1. to go after or on the track of

    "shadowing the suspect to see what he was up to"

    similar: bird-dog, chase, course, dog, follow, hound, pursue, run, tag, tail, trace, track, trail, run after
    related: accompany, chaperone, escort, hunt, search (for), seek, eye, observe, watch
    opposite: guide, lead, pilot
    near: head

  2. to make dark, dim, or indistinct

    "thickening clouds shadowed the countryside"

    similar: becloud, bedim, befog, blacken, blear, blur, cloud, darken, dim, dislimn, fog, fuzz (up), haze, mist, obscure, overcast, overcloud, overshadow, shroud
    related: adumbrate, blot out, conceal, eclipse, hide, obliterate, screen, shade, camouflage, cloak, cover, curtain, disguise, mask, veil
    opposite: brighten, illuminate, illumine, light (up), lighten
    near: expose, reveal, uncover, unveil

  3. to shelter (something) from light and heat

    "a pathway shadowed by a canopy of arching branches"

    similar: shade
    related: cloud, darken, dim, dull, overcast, overshadow, canopy, cover, protect, screen
    near: illuminate, light, lighten, expose

Related Entry: Eye shadows (noun)

Eye shadows is a different word from Shadows. The synonyms below are for eye shadows, not for shadows.

  1. as in creams, oils

    similar: blushes, cold creams, creams, kohls, lipsticks, lotions, mascaras, oils, powders, rouges, vanishing creams, cosmetics, makeups, maquillages, paints, war paints, greasepaints, camos, camouflages

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Shadows

The most common words with a similar meaning to Shadows:

black, blackness, candlelight, dark, darkness, dusk, gloaming, gloom, murk, night, semidarkness, shade, twilight, umbra, bird-dogs, chases, courses, dogs, follows, hounds, pursues, runs, tags, tails, traces, tracks, trails, beclouds, bedims, befogs, blackens, blears, blurs, clouds, darkens, dims, dislimns, fogs, fuzzes (up), hazes

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Shadows

Words with the opposite meaning of Shadows:

blaze, brightness, brilliance, day, daylight, glare, glow, light, lightness, guides, leads, pilots, brightens, illuminates, illumines, lightens, lights (up)

Related Words for Shadows

midnight, blackout, brownout, dimout, shadiness, umbrage, dullness, somberness, cloudiness, fogginess, haziness, mistiness, murkiness, dimness, faintness, gloominess, grayness, paleness, half-light, accompanies, chaperones, escorts, hunts, searches (for), seeks, eyes, observes, watches, adumbrates, blots out

Near Antonyms of Shadows

moonlight, starlight, sunlight, effulgence, radiance, radiancy, shine, sunshine, incandescence, luminance, luminescence, luminosity, luminousness, heads, exposes, reveals, uncovers, unveils, lights

Word Forms of Shadows

Inflections: shadowed, shadowing

Derived words: shadowless (adjective), shadowlike (adjective), shadower (noun)

Origin & Etymology of Shadows

Middle English shadwe, from Old English sceaduw-, sceadu shade

First known use: before 12th century

Frequently Asked Questions about Shadows

What does "Shadows" mean?

"Shadows" means the dark figure cast upon a surface by a body intercepting the rays from a source of light. As an a noun and a verb, it is defined as: the dark figure cast upon a surface by a body intercepting the rays from a source of light. It has 4 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Shadows"?

Other words for "Shadows" include black, blackness, candlelight, dark, darkness, dusk, gloaming and gloom. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Shadows" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Shadows"?

There are 93 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Shadows". Common alternatives include black, blackness, candlelight, dark, darkness, dusk, gloaming, gloom, murk and night.

What is the opposite of "Shadows"?

Antonyms of "Shadows" include blaze, brightness, brilliance, day, daylight, glare, glow and light. Near antonyms include moonlight, starlight, sunlight and effulgence.

How do you use "Shadows" in a sentence?

Examples of "Shadows" in a sentence: "lurking in the shadows"; "shadowing the suspect to see what he was up to"; "thickening clouds shadowed the countryside".

Is "Shadows" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Shadows" can be used as a noun and a verb, depending on the context.

How do you pronounce "Shadows"?

"Shadows" is pronounced /ˈsha-(ˌ)dō/ and divided into syllables as shad·ow.

What is the origin of the word "Shadows"?

"Shadows" comes from Middle English shadwe, from Old English sceaduw-, sceadu shade. First known use: before 12th century.