Word forms: comparative shallower, superlative shallowest
1. adjective
A shallow container, hole, or area of water measures only a short distance from the top to the bottom.
Put the milk in a shallow dish.
The water is quite shallow for some distance.
2. adjective
If you describe a person, piece of work, or idea as shallow, you disapprove of them because they do not show or involve any serious or careful thought.
[disapproval]
I think he is shallow, vain and untrustworthy.
The evening news is often criticized for being shallow.
Synonyms: superficial, surface, empty, slight More Synonyms of shallow
shallownessuncountable noun
...intellectual shallowness.
3. adjective
If your breathing is shallow, you take only a very small amount of air into your lungs at each breath.
She began to hear her own taut, shallow breathing.
shallowlygraded adverb [ADVERB with verb]
He was breathing, quickly and shallowly.
shallow in British English
(ˈʃæləʊ)
adjective
1.
having little depth
2.
lacking intellectual or mental depth or subtlety; superficial
noun
3. (often plural)
a shallow place in a body of water; shoal
verb
4.
to make or become shallow
Derived forms
shallowly (ˈshallowly)
adverb
shallowness (ˈshallowness)
noun
Word origin
C15: related to Old English sceald shallow; see shoal1
shallow in American English
(ˈʃæloʊ)
adjective
1.
not deep
a shallow lake
2.
lacking depth of character, intellect, or meaning; superficial
3.
slight; weak
shallow breathing
noun [usually pl., often with sing. v.]
4.
a shallow place in a body of water; shoal
verb transitive, verb intransitive
5.
to make or become shallow
SIMILAR WORDS: ˌsuperˈficial
Derived forms
shallowly (ˈshallowly)
adverb
shallowness (ˈshallowness)
noun
Word origin
ME shalow < OE *scealw < IE base *(s)kel-, to dry out > shoal2, Gr skellein
Examples of 'shallow' in a sentence
shallow
Stress makes your heart beat faster and your breathing shallow.
The Sun (2010)
We were talking about something deep then you went back to the shallow end.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The fabulous is too often undermined by shallow foundations.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
Use a sharp knife to make shallow cuts along the surface.
The Sun (2013)
Whisk the egg smooth in a shallow cereal bowl and add about a third to the potato.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
Take the chops from the pan and put them in a shallow roasting tin.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
She took a quick shallow breath and her face went strange and tight.
Bachmann, Susan (editor) & Barth, Melinda Between Worlds: A Reader, Rhetoric and Handbook (1995)
The lack of light and moisture combined with the shallow depth of soil make growing conditions harsh.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Transfer to a shallow container and freeze until firm.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
They were found in shallow graves a week earlier.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Transfer to a shallow dish and serve.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
They like shallow pools that collect warmth.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
She was shallow breathing and very pale.
The Sun (2012)
We glide about in the shallow end.
John Walsh ARE YOU TALKING TO ME?: A Life Through the Movies (2004)
They will also make your breathing shallow.
The Sun (2012)
Whisk the egg in a shallow bowl.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
Spread on to a shallow roasting tin.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
He told me to take shallow breaths and no sudden movements.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Tip into a shallow container and chill in the freezer.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Slice the oranges thinly into discs and place in a single layer in a shallow serving dish.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
We sit cramped up at a desk and breathe little shallow breaths with the top of our lungs.