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Glite Dictionary
🔫 To fire a weapon 📷 To take a picture 💨 To move quickly ⚽ To kick or throw 🎯 A shooting event 💸 To waste money 🌱 A young plant 🌱 To start growing 🎲 To throw dice 🌟 To measure stars 🧵 To weave colors
to shoot

to shoot

16 2.8
To begin to grow new stems or buds from a plant
  • verb
  • /ʃuːt/
translation icon : brotar
  • We will rise like plants shoot through cracks in concrete.

Could the purple king shoot upward if it wanted to?

Examples

  • I pass a tall briar, shooting leafy and flowery branches across the path.

    Academic text (1992)

  • And only then does the first little shoot come up through the ground.

  • I bet if we gave some real food to these people, they would shoot up like bean stalks.

    Fatman (2020)

  • Within two months, Nix had shot up four inches and added half again to his weight.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • Scaly tree trunks, thick as the columns of the Parthenon, shoot heavenward all around him.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • After the rain, you could see the new shoot of the plant pushing through the soil.

  • In spring, many gardens are full of green shoots as flowers and vegetables begin to grow.

  • The gardener noticed a tiny shoot emerging from the seed he had planted last week.

Synonyms

to sprout
vsto shoot
68 2.0

To begin to grow new shoots or leaves

is more about making buds, branches, or germinating
to bud
vsto shoot
11 1.0

To start to grow as a new shoot on a plant

is broader and includes germination and branch emergence
to begin to sprout
vsto shoot
1 3.2

To start growing, usually of plants or seeds

focuses on the very start of growth rather than bud or branch production
to outshoot
vsto shoot
  • Specialized
6.5

To grow small new stems or branches from a plant

is broader and includes initial germination and bud formation
to bourgeon
vsto shoot
9.9

To start to grow quickly, often by forming buds

is more neutral about growth speed rather than rapid flourish
to burgeon forth
vsto shoot
7.8

To begin to grow quickly, often as new shoots or leaves

focuses on a rapid beginning while the main concept is more general

Antonyms

to wither
91 4.4

To become dry and weak, as with plants or feelings

to stagnate
19 6.8

To stop growing or changing and stay the same, like water in a pond

Idioms

to shoot oneself in the foot
  • Informal
20 8.4

Do or say something that harms your own chances

to shoot the breeze
  • Informal
9 6.8

To chat in a relaxed informal way about unimportant things

to shoot from the hip
  • Informal
6 8.1

To speak or act quickly without thinking carefully

to shoot the messenger
3 7.8

Blame or punish the person who brings bad news instead of fixing the problem

to shoot first and ask questions later
  • Informal
3 8.4

Act quickly without thinking or checking facts

to shoot for the stars
  • Informal
2 4.7

Try to reach a very high and difficult goal

to shoot the bull
  • US
2 8.1

To chat in a relaxed way about everyday things

to shoot from the lip
  • Informal
1 8.9

To speak quickly without thinking and risk upsetting people

to shoot yourself in the foot
  • Informal
1 7.5

Cause trouble for yourself by your actions, often by accident

to shoot off at the mouth
  • Informal
1 9.4

Say things quickly without thinking that may hurt people or make you sorry later

to shoot your bolt
  • Informal
1 8.6

To use up all your energy or chances so none remain

to shoot one's bolt
  • Informal
8.8

To use up all your energy or chances

to shoot one's load
  • Offensive
9.9

Use all your energy at once and have none left in a rude way

to shoot someone's face off
  • Offensive
9.9

To surprise someone very strongly, often in a funny way

Phrasal Verbs

to shoot down
207 4.4

Fire at a plane or missile so it falls to the ground

to shoot down
  • Informal
31 3.8

Say no to an idea or plan in a sudden, strong way

to shoot for
  • Informal
30 3.9

To try to reach a big, difficult goal

to shoot up
25 4.1

Rise quickly to a much higher level

to shoot one's mouth off
  • Informal
5 8.0

To say things carelessly or proudly without thinking about the result

to shoot off
  • Informal
3 4.1

To send a message quickly without much thought

to shoot craps
  • US
1 8.4

Play a dice gambling game to try to win money

to shoot holes in
  • Informal
1 7.2

To find and point out weak points in an idea, plan or argument

to shoot a question
  • Informal
1 3.7

To ask a question quickly and directly

to shoot a line
  • Informal
1 8.3

To send a short message to someone by phone or text

to shoot a line
  • Australian
9.6

To say proud things to make yourself seem better than you are

Compounds

photo shoot
56 3.1

A session when someone takes photos of people or things

turkey shoot
  • NSFW
3 8.4

An event or situation where winning is very easy, for example a shooting contest with easy targets

bamboo shoot
2 2.1

A young stem of bamboo you can eat and use as a vegetable in Asian cooking

point-and-shoot camera
2 3.4

A small light camera with automatic settings for taking simple photos

shoot 'em up
1 8.1

A fast action game or movie with a lot of shooting

shoot-'em-up
  • NSFW
1 8.0

A fast action film or game with lots of shooting and fights

How Developed

to flourish
116 4.1
to grow
39 2.0
to shoot
16 2.8
to sprout
68 2.0
to germinate
10 4.8

Surface Forms

shoot infinitive
shooting present participle
shoots third person singular
shot past
shot past participle

Etymology

Shoot meaning 'to begin to grow' comes from an old English word sceotan meaning 'to send out' or 'push forward'. A plant 'shoots' when it sends out buds or new branches, which is why we use the word.