🔫 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

3 9.9

To weave threads of different colors into cloth

verb
/ʃut/

Archaic

: entrelazar hilos de colores

The marble was incredibly beautiful, the most beautiful stone I ever saw, deep dark purple shot through with crimson veins in patterns so complex and mysterious I could have gazed at them entranced for hours, wondering what they meant or if they meant anything at all.

Examples

On her next visit, she brought Joanne a lacy, white, high-necked blouse shot through with gold threads that someone had given her years ago.

Fiction book (1994)
The texture of the wall changed from earth to aggregate to deep umber stone, to ebony rock shot with veins of milky quartz that gradually grew in width and translucency.

Fiction book (1999)
Dark hair shot with gray.

Fiction book (1997)
Beams of sunlight shoot through the holes that Kate shot through the wall.

Fiction book (1996)
"In his mind, he could still see her as she had appeared to him that night, dressed in a white gown shot with golden threads.

Fiction book (1994)
On the far side of the stream, she saw a splendid spider web, shot with rainbows.

Fiction book (2001)
Branches and twigs of fine crystal were shot through with blues, reds, and golds flowing through icy veins.

Fiction book (1997)
Even before he went to Manhattan, his basic palette of grays and blacks, shot through with those red, white, or yellow slices of pure energy, vibrated with a kinetic power that's missing in Taconic Hills.

Fiction book (1996)
Her dress was beautifully shot with vibrant hues of green and pink, creating a stunning effect.
The artist's tapestry was shot with golden threads, giving it a rich and luxurious look.

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

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

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

Surface Forms

shoot infinitive

shooting present participle

shoots third person singular

shot past

shot past participle

Etymology

A helpful way to remember shoot in weaving is to imagine threads being 'shot' quickly through the cloth, like being 'sent across' the fabric from the old English sceotan 'to send quickly'. So in textiles, to shoot means to pass threads through the cloth to make a pattern.