SHED Synonyms: 86 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How is the word 'shed' different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of shed are cast , discard , junk , scrap , and slough . While all these words mean "to get rid of," shed and slough imply a throwing off of something both useless and encumbering and often suggest a consequent renewal of vitality or luster. // shed a bad habit // finally sloughed off the depression

Q: When would 'cast' be a good substitute for 'shed'?

Although the words cast and shed have much in common, cast , especially when used with off, away , or out , implies a forceful rejection or repudiation. // cast off her friends

Q: When is it sensible to use 'discard' instead of 'shed'?

While the synonyms discard and shed are close in meaning, discard implies the letting go or throwing away of something that has become useless or superfluous though often not intrinsically valueless. // discard old clothes

Q: How do 'scrap' and 'junk' relate to one another, in the sense of 'shed'?

Both scrap and junk imply throwing away or breaking up as worthless in existent form. // scrap all the old ways // would junk our educational system

shed 1 of 2

verb

ˈshed

Definition of shed next

as in to peel

to cast (a natural bodily covering or appendage) aside a snake's skin doesn't grow as the snake does, so every so often the snake will shed its old skin

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in to unload

to get rid of as useless or unwanted you need to shed your old notions of propriety and have some fun for a change

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

shed

2 of 2

noun

as in hut

Synonyms & Similar Words

Synonym Chooser

How is the word shed different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of shed are cast, discard, junk, scrap, and slough. While all these words mean "to get rid of," shed and slough imply a throwing off of something both useless and encumbering and often suggest a consequent renewal of vitality or luster.

shed a bad habit

finally sloughed off the depression

When would cast be a good substitute for shed?

Although the words cast and shed have much in common, cast, especially when used with off, away, or out, implies a forceful rejection or repudiation.

cast off her friends

When is it sensible to use discard instead of shed?

While the synonyms discard and shed are close in meaning, discard implies the letting go or throwing away of something that has become useless or superfluous though often not intrinsically valueless.

discard old clothes

How do scrap and junk relate to one another, in the sense of shed?

Both scrap and junk imply throwing away or breaking up as worthless in existent form.

scrap all the old ways

would junk our educational system

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of shed

Verb

Progressives argue shedding light on Trump’s results could be winning strategy Shasti Conrad, candidate for DNC vice chair and first woman of color to lead the Washington state Democratic Party, said progressives should draw a comparison between their intentions and Trump’s. —

Rachel Schilke, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 1 Feb. 2025 The airplane’s black box has been recovered and should shed more light on the final moments of the otherwise unremarkable flight from Wichita, Kansas. —

Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 31 Jan. 2025

Noun

In the driveway of a rundown house, two soldiers work quickly under the glow of headlamps, loading weapons from a shed into the back of a battered truck. —

Brian Mann, NPR, 24 Dec. 2024 Right now, Chuck and Gail’s house still stands with its Spanish tile, twin writers’ sheds, and framed Sylvia Plath drawing, the flames stopped by the choppers’ water bombs half a block from their gate. —

Anna Journey, The New Yorker, 20 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for shed

Recent Examples of Synonyms for shed

Verb

Levin’s sister peeled away the duct tape and performed CPR while waiting for emergency responders to arrive, prosecutors said.

— Madeline Buckley, Chicago Tribune, 1 Feb. 2025
The crash peeled open the truck and propelled 4.160 gallons of milk in the northbound lanes near Lake Worth Road.

— Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 31 Jan. 2025