shiner
Americannoun
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Slang. black eye.
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any of various small American freshwater fishes having glistening scales, especially a minnow.
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any of various silvery, marine fishes, as the menhaden or butterfish.
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a defect in silk or synthetic filament or fabric, produced either in the process of winding or as a result of shuttle friction and appearing on fabric as a shiny streak.
noun
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something that shines, such as a polishing device
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any of numerous small North American freshwater cyprinid fishes of the genus Notropis and related genera, such as N. cornutus ( common shiner ) and Notemigonus crysoleucas ( golden shiner )
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a popular name for the mackerel
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informal a black eye
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old-fashioned a vagrant or tramp
Etymology
Origin of shiner
1350–1400; 1900–05 shiner for def. 2; Middle English; shine 1, -er 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Dimon’s decision ends months of speculation by everyone from bankers and real-estate brokers to shoe shiners about the U.S. bank’s next move.
The next day, Benny’s got a shiner and Grace has a hangover, but the ecstasy from their triumphant night lingers.
From Salon
“We call them shiners,” she added, because they catch the eye.
From Seattle Times
Most of them were small species, such as minnows and shiners, but thousands of larger fish, including catfish and carp, also perished.
From New York Times
Anthony Davis has a shiner, and things just got heavier.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.