shelfful - Glite Dictionary

Examples

The library has a shelfful of new books.
She arranged a shelfful of flowerpots by the window.
There was a shelfful of trophies in his office.
Can you fit a shelfful of toys in that box?
The store displayed a shelfful of colorful toys on the shelves.
After the sale, my friend had a shelfful of fresh produce to take home.
The museum featured a shelfful of historical artifacts for visitors to explore.

Synonyms

bagful

vsshelfful

4 1.1

An amount that fills a bag, like apples or candies

is for items on a wide flat surface rather than inside a flexible pouch

boxful

vsshelfful

1 1.9

An amount that fills a box

is for items on a wide flat surface rather than inside a closed holder

closetful

vsshelfful

1 3.7

A closet full of things like clothes or boxes

is for items on a wide flat surface rather than inside a small room

rackful

vsshelfful

7.7

An amount that fills a rack

is for items placed on a wide horizontal surface rather than an open frame

caseful

vsshelfful

7.7

An amount that fills a box, for example wine bottles in one box

is for items on a wide flat surface rather than inside a sturdy holder

binful

vsshelfful

5.8

An amount that fills a bin

is for items on a wide flat surface rather than inside a storage receptacle

containerful

vsshelfful

3.7

The amount that fills a container

is for items on a wide flat surface rather than inside a vessel

Surface Forms

shelfful singular

shelffuls plural

Morphology

shelfful = shelf (transparent) = shelf + ful

The meaning is directly derived from 'shelf' + the productive '-ful' (amount that fills), so learners can infer the sense from the base word and suffix.

Etymology

Shelfful comes from shelf and the ending -ful, which means 'full of' or 'as much as'. Think of filling a shelf until it is full — just like a handful is the amount you can hold in your hand, a shelfful is the amount that fills a shelf.