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

to shoot

7 2.8

To begin to grow new stems or buds from a plant

verb
/ʃuːt/

: 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

63 2.0

To begin to grow new shoots or leaves

is more about making buds, branches, or germinating

to bud

vsto shoot

8 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 burgeon forth

vsto shoot

1 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

to bourgeon

vsto shoot

1 9.9

To start to grow quickly, often by forming buds

is more neutral about growth speed rather than rapid flourish

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

Antonyms

to wither

50 4.4

To become dry and weak, as with plants or feelings

to stagnate

18 6.8

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

Idioms

to shoot the messenger

9 7.8

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

to shoot the breeze

Informal

9 6.8

To chat in a relaxed informal way about unimportant things

to shoot from the hip

Informal

9 8.1

To speak or act quickly without thinking carefully

to shoot yourself in the foot

Informal

4 7.5

Cause trouble for yourself by your actions, often by accident

to shoot for the stars

Informal

2 4.7

Try to reach a very high and difficult goal

to shoot the bull

1 8.1

To chat in a relaxed way about everyday things

to shoot someone's face off

Offensive

1 9.9

To surprise someone very strongly, often in a funny way

to shoot from the lip

Informal

1 8.9

To speak quickly without thinking and risk upsetting people

to shoot first and ask questions later

Informal

1 8.4

Act quickly without thinking or checking facts

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 oneself in the foot

Informal

1 8.4

Do or say something that harms your own chances

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

Phrasal Verbs

to shoot down

149 4.4

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

to shoot for

Informal

41 3.9

To try to reach a big, difficult goal

to shoot down

Informal

35 3.8

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

to shoot up

25 4.1

Rise quickly to a much higher level

to shoot off

Informal

4 4.1

To send a message quickly without much thought

to shoot craps

2 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

to shoot one's mouth off

Informal

8.0

To say things carelessly or proudly without thinking about the result

Compounds

photo shoot

66 3.1

A session when someone takes photos of people or things

shoot 'em up

5 8.1

A fast action game or movie with a lot of shooting

turkey shoot

NSFW

4 8.4

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

shoot-'em-up

NSFW

3 8.0

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

point-and-shoot camera

3 3.4

A small light camera with automatic settings for taking simple photos

bamboo shoot

1 2.1

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

How Developed

to flourish

113 4.1

to grow

1 2.0

to shoot

7 2.8

to sprout

63 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.