shift definition

1. an event in which something is displaced without rotation
2. the time period during which you are at work
3. the act of moving from one place to another
• examples: his constant shifting disrupted the class
4. a crew of workers who work for a specific period of time
5. the key on the typewriter keyboard that shifts from lower-case letters to upper-case letters
6. change place or direction
• examples: Shift one's position
7. move from one setting or context to another
• examples: shift the emphasis
• examples: shift one's attention
8. change in quality
• examples: His tone shifted
9. move and exchange for another
• examples: shift the date for our class reunion
10. use a shift key on a keyboard
• examples: She could not shift so all her letters are written in lower case
11. change phonetically as part of a systematic historical change
• examples: Grimm showed how the consonants shifted
12. change gears
• examples: you have to shift when you go down a steep hill