shuttle
1 of 2noun
shut·tle ˈshə-tᵊl 
1
a
: a device used in weaving for passing the thread of the weft between the threads of the warp
b
: a spindle-shaped device holding the thread in tatting, knotting, or netting
c
: a sliding thread holder for the lower thread of a sewing machine that carries the lower thread through a loop of the upper thread to make a stitch
2
: shuttlecock
3
a
: a going back and forth regularly over an often short route by a vehicle
b(1)
: an established route used in a shuttle
(2)
: a vehicle used in a shuttle
a shuttle bus
c
: space shuttle
shuttleless adjective
shuttle
2 of 2verb
shuttled; shuttling ˈshət-liŋ
ˈshə-tᵊl-iŋ
transitive verb
1
: to cause to move or travel back and forth frequently
2
: to transport in, by, or as if by a shuttle
shuttled them to school
intransitive verb
1
: to move or travel back and forth frequently
2
: to move by or as if by a shuttle
Example Sentences
Noun A shuttle takes people from the parking lot to the airport. Verb We shuttled between the city and the country all summer. A bus shuttled people from the parking lot to the dock.
Recent Examples on the Web
Glae Thien, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Sep. 2022 Some shuttle flights scrubbed as many as five times before finally lifting off. Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 9 Sep. 2022 Just getting to the rental car counters requires a particularly lengthy shuttle ride. Los Angeles Times, 8 Sep. 2022 Sequoia Shuttle Avoid parking headaches at Sequoia National Park with an eco-friendly shuttle that departs from most Visalia hotels. Sunset Magazine, 6 Sep. 2022 The shuttle vehicles are either Sprinter vans or 28-passenger buses, most equipped with bike racks. Katie Jackson, Outside Online, 6 Sep. 2022 The space shuttles were powered by engines using liquid hydrogen, as well as liquid oxygen, and the four engines on the SLS were previously used on shuttle flights. Micah Maidenberg, WSJ, 5 Sep. 2022 Two previous shuttle flights each had six scrubs before successful launches on try No. 7. Richard Tribou, Orlando Sentinel, 3 Sep. 2022 Four people have died and another eight were injured after a shuttle van flipped over the center median of the New Jersey Palisades Interstate Parkway in the early hours of Friday morning, police said. Caitlin Mcfall, Fox News, 2 Sep. 2022 New York Times, 17 Aug. 2022 The aides shuttle the lawmakers between events in the middle of packed schedules. Chad Pergram | Fox News, Fox News, 6 Aug. 2022 Though huge, all these projects would shuttle significantly less water than one proposed in the 1980s: the Peripheral Canal, defeated by voters, which would have had a maximum capacity of 22,000 cubic feet per second. Los Angeles Times, 27 July 2022 Many of the Mercedes vans, contracted from around the country, used to shuttle passengers from satellite parking lots, made the same trip. Leigh Montville, BostonGlobe.com, 20 June 2022 The Alamo Regional Mobility Authority could decide Wednesday whether to pursue one of two proposals — including one from SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s tunneling company — to shuttle visitors between San Antonio International Airport and downtown. Eric Killelea, San Antonio Express-News, 15 Mar. 2022 Several subways, including the E, 6, N, and W, shuttle you downtown, uptown, and east to Queens in a flash. Lauren Mowery, Forbes, 12 Aug. 2022 Under Donald Trump, 42 people, including 18 family members, were assigned protection, requiring agents to shuttle among the former president's various properties and accompany the family's adult children on frequent foreign and domestic travel. Amy Nakamura, USA TODAY, 18 May 2022 Fox also suggests turning on bathroom or kitchen exhaust fans, which can shuttle germy air outside. Liz Szabo, NBC News, 17 May 2022 See More
Noun
Parking: $20 advance online or $25 on location at South Shores Park, near Sea World, with shuttle to site. Glae Thien, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Sep. 2022 Some shuttle flights scrubbed as many as five times before finally lifting off. Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 9 Sep. 2022 Just getting to the rental car counters requires a particularly lengthy shuttle ride. Los Angeles Times, 8 Sep. 2022 Sequoia Shuttle Avoid parking headaches at Sequoia National Park with an eco-friendly shuttle that departs from most Visalia hotels. Sunset Magazine, 6 Sep. 2022 The shuttle vehicles are either Sprinter vans or 28-passenger buses, most equipped with bike racks. Katie Jackson, Outside Online, 6 Sep. 2022 The space shuttles were powered by engines using liquid hydrogen, as well as liquid oxygen, and the four engines on the SLS were previously used on shuttle flights. Micah Maidenberg, WSJ, 5 Sep. 2022 Two previous shuttle flights each had six scrubs before successful launches on try No. 7. Richard Tribou, Orlando Sentinel, 3 Sep. 2022 Four people have died and another eight were injured after a shuttle van flipped over the center median of the New Jersey Palisades Interstate Parkway in the early hours of Friday morning, police said. Caitlin Mcfall, Fox News, 2 Sep. 2022 Verb
The scientists shuttle the sample back and forth between a small army of laboratory robots. New York Times, 17 Aug. 2022 The aides shuttle the lawmakers between events in the middle of packed schedules. Chad Pergram | Fox News, Fox News, 6 Aug. 2022 Though huge, all these projects would shuttle significantly less water than one proposed in the 1980s: the Peripheral Canal, defeated by voters, which would have had a maximum capacity of 22,000 cubic feet per second. Los Angeles Times, 27 July 2022 Many of the Mercedes vans, contracted from around the country, used to shuttle passengers from satellite parking lots, made the same trip. Leigh Montville, BostonGlobe.com, 20 June 2022 The Alamo Regional Mobility Authority could decide Wednesday whether to pursue one of two proposals — including one from SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s tunneling company — to shuttle visitors between San Antonio International Airport and downtown. Eric Killelea, San Antonio Express-News, 15 Mar. 2022 Several subways, including the E, 6, N, and W, shuttle you downtown, uptown, and east to Queens in a flash. Lauren Mowery, Forbes, 12 Aug. 2022 Under Donald Trump, 42 people, including 18 family members, were assigned protection, requiring agents to shuttle among the former president's various properties and accompany the family's adult children on frequent foreign and domestic travel. Amy Nakamura, USA TODAY, 18 May 2022 Fox also suggests turning on bathroom or kitchen exhaust fans, which can shuttle germy air outside. Liz Szabo, NBC News, 17 May 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English shittle, shutle, from Old English scutel, scytel dart; akin to Old Norse skutill bolt, Old English scēotan to shoot — more at shoot
First Known Use
Noun
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Verb
1550, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1
Phrases Containing shuttle
Kids Definition
shuttle 1 of 2
noun
shut·tle ˈshə-tᵊl
1
: an instrument used in weaving to carry the thread back and forth from side to side through the threads that run lengthwise
2
: a vehicle (as a bus or train) that goes back and forth over a short route
3
: space shuttle
shuttle
2 of 2verb
shuttled; shuttling
: to move or bring back and forth rapidly or often
The ferry shuttled travelers across the river.